Erased
by Paprika012345
Summary: Five years have passed since the end of When Reality Becomes Blurred. Mika, Seyann, and Michelle are all settled into life in Naruto's worldthey all have their own life. However events are swiftly approaching that will change their lives forever.
1. Chapter 1

A/N-IT'S HERE!!! This is the sequel to 'When Reality Becomes Blurred'!!! There will be a 'Pieces of an Altered Reality vol 2' when I can get some one-shot ideas. **I also have profiles for each and every character for people who want them, just in case you want to read up on the children.** Also….**_IF YOU HAVE NOT READ 'WHEN REALITY BECOMES BLURRED' DO NOT READ THIS STORY!!! IT CONTAINS OC'S THAT WERE INTRODUCED IN THE FIRST STORY AND NEW READERS, UNLESS THEY ARE SENT THE PROFILES OF THE CHARACTERS (AVALIBLE UPON REQUEST) WILL FAIL TO UNDERSTAND THE CHARACTERS!!!!_** Hope you guys enjoy this fic…READ AND REVIEW!!!

Disclaimer-Don't own

Chapter 1

_'I've liked her for a long time'_ the messy blond head furtively bobbed as he scribbled these words into his own private notebook. His hazy pupil less eyes shot up and looked nervously around the room for the location of the teacher.

Good. Iruka-Sensei was still down at the front of the classroom, writing some nonsense on the black board. His eyes skittered across the room, towards the object of his affections, her silver hair curtained over her face. His sky blue eyes darted back down to his notebook page.

'_It makes me wonder how my mother ever got my father's attention. I mean, she was so shy…and I seem to have gotten that from her, at least when it comes to telling…certain people…how I feel. (Itachi if you read this I'm going to kill you.)_

"Kame." Startled, the blonde dropped his pencil and looked up sharply. The scarred face of his teacher was directly in front of him. "Yes, Iruka-Sensei?" "What did I just ask you to do…well not you but what did I just ask the entire class to do?"

The entire class giggled…from their position at the bottom of the classroom, lined up to perform a practice jutsu.

The son of the head Hyuuga blushed like his mother and muttered, "For everyone to line up?" Iruka smiled tightly and said, "Yes."

Embarrassed, Kame snapped his notebook closed and went downstairs to stand beside the black-haired Itachi, his best friend.

Iruka stared at his student's back. _Like father like son. _

Kame could clearly see the oh-so-famous Uchiha smirk gracing the face of his closest friend. "Oh wipe that smirk off your self-satisfied face you teme…" growled the blonde. Sienna giggled from beside her black haired friend, which caused Kame's face to fall slightly, before he recovered.

"What were you writing about in that diary of yours, Kame, that you got so absorbed and almost completely ignored Iruka-Sensei?" whispered Sienna. Kame's face turned slightly pink but he kept up a relatively calm façade.

"Nothing," he whispered back. "Just something along the lines of what I'm going to do first as an official Genin. It's going to be something like eating a fine bowl of Ramen and, after that, go to dad and see if there is any possible way he can fix our team so that us three are on the same team."

Sienna laughed under her breath. "I think only _my,_ father could arrange something like that. Therefore, I'll try and rig something. Leave it all to me."

Itachi was in no way fooled by this little act. He could recognize Kame's infatuation with the daughter of the Hokage a mile away, thanks to the affinity for blushing that Hinata had passed on to her son (much to Kame's embarrassment.) However, since Itachi was the only one (thus far) to pick up on the slight blushes that Kame gave around Sienna, Kame's secret was safe.

There was only one little problem with Kame's feelings towards the daughter of his father's old sensei.

Itachi was in love with Sienna as well. This little secret had yet to be disclosed to Kame, however, Itachi wasn't sure he wanted his friend to find out, mostly because he feared what Kame's reaction to this news would be,

After class was over, Sienna seemed to remember something as the three of them walked home. "Oh! I didn't tell you guys, did I?" Her long silver hair was in her face so she pushed it back behind her ear. Itachi and Kame (who flanked her) were both looking at her expectantly. Her eyes shone a soft silver (happiness, she had inherited her mother's trait.)

"My parents told me that if I pass my Genin exam, Keiko too, they'd take us to an unspecified location in…" she paused for dramatic effect. "The other world."

Kame smiled. He knew how much Sienna as well as Keiko were fascinated by the world they (well…their mothers) had come from. "That's great Sienna…have fun!"

Itachi rolled his eyes. Kame was one of the best actors in Konoha.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"MOM!!!! GUESS WHAT!!!" Keiko raced into the kitchen, excited.

Her voice, however, startled her mother and caused the black haired Kunoichi to drop the loaded cookie sheet that she held in her hand, in surprise. The still-warm cookies tumbled to the ground.

Keiko, however, reacted in time with her sand and the metal pan never touched the ground. "Calm down mom…you're still so excitable," smirked Keiko. She floated the pan (which still had every cookie intact) over to herself; she took a warm crumbly cookie and floated it back to the stove on her sand.

"Calm down?" demanded Yourusashi Mika of her daughter as she pushed some of her black hair behind her ear, exposing a scar on her neck that she had received on a mission a few years ago. "You come in here, screaming like a banshee…" at Keiko's confused look she added, "a mythological creature from my old world," before continuing, "and scare me half to death and then you tell me to calm…"

Her voice trailed off as she looked at her daughter's forehead. Sitting on it was a Suna forehead protector.

Keiko's eyes sparkled merrily at her mother. "A forehead protector…your academy exam was today, I had forgotten. Oh sweetie, I'm so proud of you!" Mika hugged her daughter tightly. "Why don't you head over to Kazekage tower and tell your father? Tell him to send a message to Konoha and tell Aunt Seyann that everything is okay on this end."

Keiko nodded and vanished in a swirl of her sand, leaving trails of the grainy stuff along the floor.

"I TOLD YOU NOT TO DO THAT IN THE HOUSE ANYMORE!!!!" yelled Mika, forgetting her daughter could no longer hear her.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Congratulations Sienna, you passed your academy exam. And…" Iruka's voice dropped as he tied the protector around the forehead of the young girl. "You did it without using Celina's chakra." Sienna flushed a dull red. "Sensei, that was one time."

She shook her teacher's hand and took her place back beside her friends, applauding when they too received their own protectors.

As they walked home that night, they chatted happily over the day. "So, you going to go get that Ramen Kame?" "Yeah…you wanna join me?" "Can't, gotta go tell mom that I passed. What are you going to do Itachi?"

"I am," said Itachi with a slight smile on his face (his mother's blood was showing through) "going to finally get my father to teach me that fireball jutsu." Kame and Sienna exchanged a look, smiling.

"Mooooommy…" singsonged Sienna as she came through the door of the Hokage residence. Angel was sitting at the table with Kenji (who was visiting from Suna) doing their academy homework. "Hey hon, sorry I couldn't come today. How did it…" Seyann came around the corner and looked at her daughter. "You passed."

The protector was nestled comfortably at Sienna's throat. "I did indeed."

Seyann hugged her daughter. "I'm so happy for you. Why don't you go tell your father? I'm sure he's anxious to hear how it came out!" Sienna smiled happily and went on her way. "By the way mom, where are we going?"

"If I tell you that, it's not going to be a surprise Sienna, honey," smirked her mother.

AN-Hope you guys enjoyed this first chapter…it got the Seyann stamp of approval…Read and Review!!!


	2. Chapter 2

A/N-Hey! Thanks to those who reviewed-Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame, puppy444219, goyankeesbooredsox, ShinRa Associate, duckichan87, Seyann, iamNOTafangirl3221, and Kyuubi92. Read and Review!!!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 2

Her flashing jade eyes widened and she turned to run away from what pursued her. But, unfortunately, what pursued her traveled faster than she and very soon overtook her. She tried to fight back with her sand but the person she fought against was more experienced. Soon she found herself pinned, unable to move.

She glared up at the person holding her down. She could get out of this…if only she could reach her kunai case. She felt her forehead protector shift as she struggled against the sand.

But, the force holding her father's sand together was strong and she couldn't move to save her life. The one who pinned her smirked down at her, his reddish hair blowing in the desert wind.

Gaara whipped a red silk handkerchief out of his pocket and bound it over his daughter's eyes. Once that was done, Keiko soon found herself on her feet and holding her mother's hand. There was only one problem-she couldn't see.

"OK. Where are you taking me, that you need to blindfold me Mom?" Keiko strained to hear anything out of the ordinary, but the resonance of her mother talking drowned out anything that her Kunoichi hearing would've heard. "Keiko, sweetheart, I didn't tell you yesterday when you asked me…" Keiko heard her mother pause and figured that her mother was mentally calculating. "67 times, why would I tell you right now when we're on our way there?" responded Mika in a sugary-sweet voice.

"Because you love me and you know keeping me in suspense will kill me?" "I highly doubt that," responded Gaara dryly.

Keiko felt her father's hand on her shoulder and sensed him take her mother's hand. "Let's go."

The Kazekage summoned his sand and whisked his family away to Konoha.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

A similar occurrence had happened in Konoha, not long after the occurrence in Suna. The infamous Copy Nin had been forced to use some of his subduing techniques-gently of course- on his daughter.

But Sienna was being less compliant than Keiko had been. She was blindfolded and tired from sparring with her father, however, she still had her mother's stubbornness-that never tired out.

"I," she said, crossing her arms over her chest with her rear firmly planted on the front porch of her home. "Am not going to move from this spot until you tell me where we're going. And furthermore, until you tell me how long we're going to be staying there," she added with a toss of her silver gilded head.

Seyann looked to her husband, a 'please help me, she's your child too…'look on her face, however, her Hokage husband lazily shrugged his shoulder and restrained the urge to pull out one of his 'secret stash' Itcha Itcha paradise novels. "Don't look at me for help Seyann, honey. You're the stubborn one, if anything…"

Sienna suppressed a gleeful giggle as she heard the sound that meant her father was getting a well-deserved smack in the head. "If you say that she got the stubbornness from me I swear, I'll shove this fist right up your…"

"Seyann, you've gotta stop abusing your husband like that…. you never know what it might end up costing you…" Sienna recognized Aunt Mika's voice immediately. "You're one to talk Mika, I've seen you get into a fight with my cousin. Those really aren't pretty." Sienna heard a resounding 'thump' on the grass outside her home, which meant that Kenji had given his mother a nice big hug. "I missed you Mom!!" "Kenji you were away from mom for like…two days." "Keiko…." said Gaara warningly. "We've explained this to you before." "Yeah, I know."

"Keiko are you there?"

"Sienna, I'm going out on a limb but are you blindfolded as well?" "Yup. My father had to use some ninjutsu to trap me, I wasn't exactly co-operative." Within a few moments, Sienna felt Keiko's hand bump her own. "Well my own darling father used his sand to subdue me." Sienna could almost sense Keiko roll her eyes.

"Well well," drawled a familiar voice. "What have we here. Two blinded and virtually helpless Kunoichi?"

Sienna recognized the voice instantly. "Kame, be quiet," she growled. "And tell Itachi to wipe the smirk that I am well aware is present on his face…off."

Keiko froze when her best friend mentioned that Itachi was there. Truth be told, she had been in love with the Uchiha since they were about 9 or 10. Every time she saw him she would always ask him how he was, how his sisters and parents were, however Itachi would give her the barest amount of information that he could possibly give before turning his back on her to pay attention to Sienna.

The sheer fact that the person she cared about most in that way rejected her in favor of her best friend stung a bit, and caused a slight bit of resentment from Keiko to Sienna that Keiko did a good job of hiding.

However, she would still try every single time she saw him. "Itachi, are you there too?" "Hn." "How are you doing?" "Fine. My sisters and my parents are also doing fine." "That's good…did you pass your Genin exam?" "Of course I did!" snapped Itachi. Keiko could tell that she was getting on his nerves so she shut up and stood next to Sienna, subdued.

"That's so sad," said Kakashi quietly. "I feel sorry for Keiko. When it comes to her, Itachi's all Sasuke." "Seyann, I'm sorry to say this but I don't know how long that situation's going to last," said Mika quietly. "Before it turns into a Sakura/Ino situation, I mean. Even if Sienna doesn't feel that way about Itachi, it'll still happen. Keiko…I think she's starting to feel a little anger towards Sienna, even if it isn't your daughter's fault."

Seyann sighed. Looking out over town, she saw Michelle approaching with Neji, Yoichi and Misaho. "I'll be sorry when it does Mika, I know how we always thought our daughters would be best friends. But anyways," she changed the subject. "Here comes  
Michelle, time to leave."

"Are you guys coming too?" Sienna asked Kame and Itachi. "No, our parents wouldn't let us, respectively. My mother's too worried about me and doesn't want me going into the other world because, after all, I am the heir to the Hyuuga clan." "My father doesn't want me to go because he wants to teach me the Fireball Jutsu."

Keiko and Sienna both smiled under their blindfolds. Both knew how important this jutsu was to Itachi.

"Keiko, Sienna time to go." The girls could hear Aunt Michelle's voice mixed in with that of their parents. The two blindfolded ones stood up and, to their surprise, were shuffled backwards into Hokage tower. "Where are we…" "Shush. No questions."

So, the girls allowed themselves to be pulled compliantly along until they stood in front of something that radiated a strange power. "Sienna I think we're in front of the mirror," whispered Keiko in awe.

The experience of passing though the mirror was weird, almost as if there was a liquid that wasn't quite a liquid passing over their appendages. Finally, they landed safely on the floor of…somewhere. After they heard everyone come through, Keiko distinguished the familiar sound of her father encompassing all with his sand.

When it went away they were now surrounded by the sounds of machinery, people, and smells that they had never experienced before.

Finally, their blindfolds were whipped off. As soon as their eyes adjusted to the bright sunlight, they took in the wonderful sight of tall metal structures, of booths serving foods they had never seen before and more people than lived in Konoha village alone.

Slowly the faces split into two identical grins. "This is going to be fun!!" they chorused.

A/N-Hope you guys enjoy this chapter of 'Erased'. Read and Review!!!!


	3. Chapter 3

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed last time-iamNOTafangirl3221, duckichan87, Seyann, Kyuubi92, puppy444219, goyankeesbooredsox and Loku. Read and Review, just don't kill me at the end of this chapter.

Disclaimer-Don't own Naruto.

Chapter 3

Mika lounged in the sun on a bench, soaking up the sounds and smells of the park. The sun was relatively hot but because it was nowhere as intense as what the sunlight was in Suna, she wasn't having any problems. As well, the roller coaster that zoomed overhead and back behind her at fairly regular intervals helped temperature control with the gentle breeze that it created upon passing.

Looking across the way at the Tilt-a-Whirl, she watched with some delight on her face as Gaara and Keiko went for another go, making this their 5th time in a row. Her daughter had challenged the '_almighty_ Kazekage' (an affectionately disrespectful nickname the little black haired Genin had for her father) to a ride marathon, with that particular ride as the torture device. She _almost_ felt guilty, having been the one to put the idea into Keiko's head but it was worth it.

Amusingly enough, it appeared that her husband was actually _losing. _After the last go round, Gaara had begun to look a little green around the gills and was actually wobbling a bit as he walked. Now _that_ was a sight to see.

Standing up and stretching her arms out, she heard her sun stiff joints pop and groan. As she stretched her neck muscles, looking first this way then that way. From one direction she noticed a small group approaching. This group consisted of Michelle, Neji, and Misaho, fresh from kiddy land. Mika had to smile as she saw the look in Misaho's hazy brown eyes-the small girl looked as though she had been given too much to do in one day but would try all the same to do everything. Which, in essence she had.

From the other direction another group was approaching. This one looked a little more rambunctious, with three young boys leading the pack, excitement radiating off of them in waves. Sienna trailed behind the boys, an amused look in her eye. Seyann looked exasperated and Kakashi…looked like Kakashi.

"How was your day so far?" she asked Michelle, who made it to the bench first. "Well," pondered the Uchiha. "So far we've had to explain to Misaho who Bugs Bunny is, what DanceDance Revolution is because she saw it in the arcade, and why, exactly, she shouldn't be scared of that swing ride. Other than that it's been fine. Seyann looks like she's at the end of her rope though." Michelle's almost black eyes twinkled. "It's fun though. What about you?"

"Keiko is currently engaging Gaara in a ride war with the tilt-a-whirl. I almost feel guilty for suggesting it but if you look, you'll notice how funny Gaara looks. Kenji went with Seyann and they're on their way back now."

"Mom!!" A small weight was suddenly hanging off of her neck. Mika made a fake, over exaggerated choking sound and said in a strained voice, "Kenji, watch the hair." Feeling her son loosen his grip, she turned him and set him before her. "How are you doing?" "Mom this is so much fun!! We've been on so many rides…I went on the Scrambler!!"

"I wanted to go on the Scrambler," said Yoichi in a slightly put off voice. "But I was too short." Michelle gave a bit of a sympathetic look to her son and ruffled his hair. "Relax honey, it's not the end of the world." Yoichi scowled in a manner that echoed his father. "I asked you not to call me that mom…"

Mika, however, was narrowing her eyes at Seyann. "You let my son go on a dangerous roller coaster, one of the most frightening in the park?" The Hokage's wife, unruffled by her friend's aggression, merely nodded and said "Yup."

Mika grinned, "Good."

Across the way, the ride was slowly creaking to a slow and gradually to a stop. Mika looked up, a smirk planted on her face. Gaara staggered off the ride, a hand in Keiko's. "Wanna go again Dad?" she asked enthusiastically. The Kazekage looked uncharacteristically ill, a strange grimace on his face as he swallowed and replied, "No, I think it's safe to say you've won sweetie. I don't think I could do that again…for a while at least."

As Gaara regained his senses and needed her help less, Keiko darted across the street and began instantly chatting with Sienna.

Gaara unsteadily made his way to his wife. "Why do I have a feeling you gave her that idea Mika?" he asked, groaning. "Because I know all about rides and stuff like that, and you know it…" she smirked and took him into a hug, rubbing his back. "Aww, poor baby…" she cooed teasingly.

After Gaara had recovered, Mika made a proposal. "Sey, 'Chelle and I would like to go off on our own if that's okay. Can you boys handle…the boys, as well as Misaho? Keiko and Sienna are old enough to go off on their own." With a nod from their parents, the two girls in question ran off.

As for the rest, Kakashi who had been nominated spokesperson for the guys said in his easygoing voice, "That sounds fine. Go ahead."

Mika grinned wickedly, exchanging glances with her friends. "We're going on that one first." She jabbed her finger at the coaster behind her. '_The Mind Eraser'_

Gaara narrowed his eyes slightly. "You had this planned didn't you? That's why the meeting point is right here." "Gaara, I am a first class Kunoichi. This type of planning is elementary." Gaara grunted in response.

The three women ran off. "Do you think," said Neji slowly. "That there will ever come a point where our wives will stop acting like our children in some small way?"

Kakashi shrugged. "Doubt it." He smiled. "But I like it."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

He stood on the abandoned platform inside the roller coaster station, watching as the women in question dashed forward, anxious to ride. What they didn't know was that the people who had been screaming in fright and delight while being hurtled down the coaster…had been illusions. Very well concealed illusions.

_The entire ride was, in fact, one big feat of Genjutsu-it had taken almost all of his strength to create it and then, even more of his chakra to weave the forbidden technique into the very steel of the ride itself. But it was worth it. His target was running up now._

"_For Desert Death…" he whispered._

_There was only one elder of Suna (at the time of the former Kazekage, Gaara's father) who vehemently opposed the placement of Shukaku into Gaara. When his words of warning went unheeded by the rest of the council, he resigned from his post and formed the terrorist group 'Desert Death' who was entirely devoted to ridding Suna of an unwarranted threat. _

_In other words, the group was entirely devoted to removing Gaara as well as his family from Suna, via any means necessary. He grinned predatorily as the Kazekage's wife, as well as two of her closest friends approached. Now or never._

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"I don't know guys…doesn't this ride look kind of…scary?" Michelle stood at the entrance to the ride, staring up at it, eyes wide. Mika and Seyann, who were a few steps in front of the Uchiha, stopped and looked back, surprised. "What are you playing at Michelle?" inquired Seyann. Their friend tinged red a little as she continued to balk going on the ride. "It just looks a little wild for my taste, that's all."

"'Chelle, you, on a regular basis I might add, battle rouge ninja, most of the time without our help. You can activate the Sharingan, wield the Chidori, and the fireball jutsu, and you are the most skilled person with a katana that we know aside from your cousin…"

Mika stared at her with uncomprehending hazel eyes. "And you're _scared _of a _ROLLER COASTER?"_ she finished, voice laced with disbelief.

Michelle simply tossed her hair at Mika's words. "I was scared of them when we lived in this world, it makes sense that I wouldn't have outgrown this fear." Mika and Sey exchanged a look and, clamping down on Michelle's wrists with their hands dragged their friend forward. "You'll get used to it, it's fun."

Once they finally got the trembling Uchiha into the station, they were met with a man who stood next to the ride. "Awesome, no line!" whooped Seyann, excited. The man, who looked to be in his twenties, with brown hair and kind brown eyes, smiled at them. "You ladies want to ride the Mind Eraser?"

Two of the ladies nodded vigorously, the other just stood there. The man chuckled. "Then come on, get in." Mika and Sey flew over the railing, dragging Michelle behind them. After making sure they were strapped in firmly (Seyann sitting beside Michelle and Mika sitting behind them), the man stood to the back of the station and said, "Enjoy the rid" as he pushed the button with a hiss and sent them on their way.

None of the girls saw the sinister smirk he bore on his face.

Down at the bench, the boys and the younger children watched as the ride, which bore their wives, jerked to a start. Kenji, however, was apprehensive for some reason. "Dad, will Mom be okay?" Gaara ruffled his son's red hair. "Of course she will."

"Something doesn't feel right though daddy…mommy…she's…something's not right." Gaara's face contorted into a small frown as he looked down at his son and back up to his wife.

As they climbed the hill, Mika's face contorted into a frown. She was so sure she had just felt… "Did you guys feel…" Before she could finish her sentence, a massive wave of chakra passed over the coaster train. "I felt that Mika…" said Seyann. "We've gotta get off this coaster, now."

The three girls began to struggle with their straps, however before they could undo them, chakra ropes shot out from the seats and easily subdued them.

"Crap, you guys I think this is a trap…" said Mika, struggling against her ropes. "No, ya think Mika?" said Seyann, annoyed as she reached for her kunai case. "Thanks for stating the obvious!" Michelle flailed against her restraints as she spoke.

"Gaara, Kakashi, something's not right." Neji snapped on his Byakkugan and got a good look at the ride. "Something's definitely, not right, they're struggling against something. I think they're tied down."

As the girls approached the top of the hill, a void, visible to even those waiting below opened at the top.

"We've got to get them off that ride," agreed Gaara and he started to summon his sand. But it was taking to long because of the different world, and finally, when the girls screamed he abandoned his efforts. "Kenji, stay here!"

He, forgetting he was in the normal world, put chakra into his feet and leapt up the coaster. Running along the steel track, he tried to make his way to his wife.

A pain ripped through Mika's head, it felt as though someone was burning it from the inside out. She had no will left to fight it and her head simply lolled to the side. They were almost into the void. She watched, motionlessly as her husband raced up the coaster. "Gaara…" she whispered, trying to reach out a restrained hand to him. He stopped several feet away in horror…too late.

The coaster slipped into the void as it breeched the hill and came out the other side…

Empty.

On the other side of the country, in an alleyway, three girls-one blonde, one redhead and one with light brown hair woke up, lying on the street with no recollection as to how they got there. "Man, I think we overdid it last night girls," muttered the redhead.

_Helping each other up, they left the alleyway and went home._

A/N-Okay…please don't hurt me. Read and Review!!!!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter-Kyuubi92, ShinRA Associate, Seyann, Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame, Puppy444219, Loku, and goyankeesbooredsox. Read and Review! This chapter is somewhat sad.

Disclaimer- Don't own Naruto, or the song 'When you come back to me again' by Garth Brooks which appears very briefly in this chapter.

Chapter 4

Gaara stared, frozen, at the last spot where his wife had been, hand still outstretched and reaching for her. Rage was slowly building within his gut; he could hear Shukaku's scream of fury.

On the ground, Neji was holding his daughter, shushing her to prevent her screams of horror. Kenji had screamed in pain and dropped to the ground, clutching the side of his neck, quickly picked up by Kakashi.

Everyone else just stood in stunned silence.

Beneath his feet, Gaara could feel the ride shifting and moving. Dissolving out from under him. 'This ride isn't real…' he realized abruptly. 'This is an illusion…people without chakra flow can't see it.' Running back down the vanishing ride, he reached the lowest point and leapt off onto the grass, just before the illusion vanished. Where there had been a terrifying roller coaster, there was now a hilly picnic area where families ate, oblivious to what had just occurred above their heads.

Upon reaching everyone else, he took his son from Kakashi and cradled the young boy close. "That ride was an illusion," said the Kazekage quickly and quietly, in almost a hiss. "Someone from the other world took our wives." The Hokage nodded in agreement. "Yes, you're right. I think, actually, that whole time we were in a Genjutsu technique, although unlike any I've ever seen."

Sienna and Keiko came running back, Keiko with a slight grimace on her face because of how the fragment of Shukaku was acting. "Wh-What happened?" she panted. Her jade eyes opened in shock. "Wh...where's mom? Where's that roller coaster they went on?" Yellow began to show in Sienna's eyes as she processed the same thought. "What's going on?"

"They're gone," said Neji, quietly, as he cradled a terrified Misaho in his arms. "No, we don't know what took them. Let's just go back to Michelle's old house." This seemed to be the general consensus and Gaara, after escorting them somewhere discreet, whisked them back to the old house with the mirror.

By this time, the shock had worn off and the emotional intensity of the situation was starting to reach the younger children. Other than Kenji, who had been sobbing in pain since Mika had vanished, and Misaho who still seemed to be in shock, the children were slowly starting to grasp that their respective mothers weren't coming back.

"I'm going home to Suna," said Gaara quietly. "I think it will be better for Kenji if he's near where Mika usually is." His jade eyes were filled with rage but his voice was subdued-the wound was still too fresh; he had no fight in him.

"As am I going back to Konoha," added Kakashi.

"I'm going to stay here for now." After seeing the strange looks that the others gave him, Neji hastily added, "for Misaho and Yoichi. The house in Konoha is the only one they've ever known. I think, maybe, if they're removed from that house, Misaho won't break down so badly when she finally does. And Yoichi… well, I don't know how he's going to react, he's never been in this situation before."

The Hokage and the Kazekage each nodded and escorted their children back through the mirror. It tore each of them apart to leave, without their wives.

'I thought I'd never be without you Sey, and for a reason that's not my fault…' thought Kakashi mournfully

'Mika, I swear to you I will find you and _shred_ the person who did this to us.' The violent thoughts of the Kazekage.

'How am I going to make it without you?' was the only thought going through the Hyuuga's head.

That night was hell for all.

OoOoOoOoOoOo _With Gaara's Family_

The agonized screams from the Kazekage's son pierced the hot desert night. He called for his daughter. "Keiko it's getting bad again…could you come in here?" The black haired girl obliged and was soon standing beside her brother's bed.

The poor nine-year-old red head still bore the invisible connection with his mother. When the woman had gone through the void and vanished, that connection had been abruptly, and very painfully severed. And on top of that, there was the emotional pain of losing the most important woman (as of yet) in his life.

However, because Keiko bore such a striking resemblance to her mother, it seemed to soothe the boy, however temporarily, when she was around. This gave him about an hour's worth of rest. Through her own tears, Keiko took Kenji gently into her arms and cooed a melody she had heard her Mika sing to Kenji every night. It was a song from a movie that Mika had loved back in the other world and bespoke of the connection that mother and son shared to a tee.

"_There's a ship out,_" she sang softly, brushing his hair back. "_On the ocean, at the mercy of the waves…_"

Once the melody was over Kenji seemed to have some manner of peace. Still unsmiling, Gaara gently tucked Kenji back under the covers and whispered to Keiko that it was alright, she could go to bed now.

She shook her head. "I can't. I tried, believe me. I want to fall asleep and wake up to this being a nightmare…but…" she bit her lip, not wanting to reveal this information to her father. "But what?" prodded the Kazekage, not wanting to bother with banter when he felt so…insane with rage. "But he won't let me. Shukaku, I mean. Every time I try to lay down, I feel as though if I let down my guard for a moment, he'll overtake me and go after the scumbag who took mom." She turned to leave. "I'm going up to the roof to train."

It took approximately two seconds for Gaara's temper to reach a boiling point. Mentally, he screamed, _**'**SHUKAKU!!!!!!**"**_

At that same instant Keiko fell down where she stood, dead tired and fast asleep. Gaara went up to the roof, picked her up gently and took her to her bed._** '**And don't you EVER try and keep her from sleeping again, no matter how angry you are,'_ fumed the Kazekage.

OoOoOoOoOoOo _With Kakashi's family_

With Seyann gone, the family of the Hokage was threatening to fall apart. Even before the attack, Sienna had never really gotten along well with her father. Whenever they would get into an argument, Sey had been a compliant go between, like oil flowing between two stubborn, rusty gears.

With her gone, added onto the emotional exhaustion of the situation, it was a mere few hours before the fighting began. How?

Sienna (who had not seen the incident at all, due to being gone with Keiko) blamed her father for not properly protecting her mother.

Well, she reached this conclusion eventually. First, she had accused him of doing something to drive Seyann away. Once Angelus had dully pointed out that this was not the case, that the other women were gone too, she had revised her theory, reaching her new conclusion after hearing about the attack.

This was the straw that broke the camels back for Kakashi. The normally passive Hokage was absolutely furious. "Hatake Sienna, how _dare_ you accuse me of not protecting your mother?" he growled at his daughter, who was frozen. "It happened to fast, there was absolutely nothing I could've done. I would've saved her if I could, don't you realize that? Don't you dare accuse me of anything else."

Sienna stared, wide eyed at her father, who gave her a Look and showed her his back. Tears welled up in her eyes and, turning, she ran out of the room. Kakashi looked behind him at his daughter's retreating back and sank into a chair, burying his face in his hands.

Angel tried to stop his sister on the way out. "Sien…" he tried. "Please stop fighting with Daddy. We need to be a family right now." Sienna looked down at her brother's sad face. "I'm sorry Angel…." she said softly before pulling her hand out of his and running off.

Itachi and Kame found her at the top of the Hokage carvings, looking out over the village of Konoha. "Hey Sienna," said Itachi, quietly. "My father told me what happened."

Kame added, in a subdued voice, "Is there anything we can do?"

Sienna sat quietly for several minutes, still as the carvings beneath her. Finally, she spoke. "Yes…there is…" Her voice sounded odd. The boys soon realized why, as her shoulders began to shake. "Make it not hurt anymore…" she whispered as tears began to fall. The two boys each sat down, one on either side, and wrapped an arm around her, comforting her as she sobbed.

If she leaned more into Kame, however subtly and probably unconsciously, Itachi didn't notice or care to comment.

OoOoOoOoOoOo _With Neji's Family_

Yoichi was clearly devastated. Gone was the little rascal, the ringleader of the three youngest boys. However, his emotions did not make themselves known. Instead (having inherited his father's stoicism in situations like this) he merely sat on the roof outside in a quiet sadness and stared at the sky.

Misaho, however, once she had come out of her shock, was completely inconsolable. Neji had finally gotten her to sleep, only to hear her screams from his bedroom. He tore across the hall in a flash, on his way there distinguishing an anguished "Mommy!!!"

Using his ninja speed, he scooped her up into his arms and cradled her close. "Shhh…Misaho, it's alright…"

"No, Daddy, it's not alright…" she sobbed. "I don't understand…. I don't understand Daddy, why is Mommy gone?" Neji pulled his daughter away from his body slightly and looked down at her stricken face. "I don't… Did we do something wrong?" a thought seemed to strike the young girl and her eyes welled up with fresh tears. "Did she not want us anymore?"

Neji's normally harder eyes softened as he pulled his daughter back close. "Oh Misaho…"

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Crystal, time to get up!!!" The redhead rubbed her eyes, groaning at the headache that was currently assaulting her skull. "Nggh…" A giggle was heard outside. "That would be a hangover… you've never been a morning person, especially after a night of bar hopping."

A blonde poked her head into the room, smiling. "Neither have you Dani…" accused the tired woman in the bed. "Will the two of you hurry up?" called an exasperated voice from the bottom of the stairs. Dani-the blonde- stepped back from the door of Crystal's room to look down at the brown haired girl at the bottom of the stairs. "Why Bethany?"

"Because," growled the brown haired woman. "If you don't, the breakfast I made will be stone cold!!! Now put some ice on that girls feet and get down here!!!"

A/N-I doubt anyone will be able to guess who is who. Good luck!!! Review!!!


	5. Chapter 5

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter-ReiKai101, Seyann, Kyuubi92, ShinRa Associate, puppy444219, and goyankeesbooredsox. Read and Review!

Disclaimer-Don't own Naruto or DDR, which gets a passing mention in this chapter.

Chapter 5

"Yum. Bethany, I honestly swear that you have way too much time on your hands if you can learn how to cook this well." Danielle 'Dani' shoveled her egg filled fork into her mouth and savored the taste.

Bethany, the girl in question, rolled her brown eyes and pushed her equally brown bangs out of her face. "Trust me, it wasn't learned recently- I have no time between university classes and work. Crys (1), please explain to Dani what my mother made me do as a girl while I finish the bacon."

Crystal 'Crys' looked up from where she was focused on her food and on potential year end productions for her dance classes to perform. "Her mother was big on her becoming a so called 'girly girl' i.e., knowing all the things that a good girl is supposed to know and so on. There were times when she wasn't allowed out because she had to either learn some new cooking technique or some new crochet stitch. All of which is completely pointless I might add." Crystal swept a strand of her blood red hair out of her face and refocused her violet eyes on the sheet in front of her.

"Why? Those talents could come in handy." The girl in question whirled from the stove and glared at the blonde, who was smiling mirthfully. "Yes," responded the cook sarcastically. "Knowing how to cook a five course meal will really come in handy when I'm in the middle of the forest, working. Oh, and maybe crocheting and knitting will help me determine which rocks I'm looking at faster…or at least make a nice pouch to carry them back in."

"Dani's right, you know, you're a stellar cook Beth. Maybe you should give up Geology and become a full time chef," commented the redhead without looking up. Bethany glowered at her other friend and, without a word, slid the bacon onto each of their plates and dug in herself.

These three friends had been living together, as housemates, for about a year. Despite having been friends before, they learned it was quite different when you lived in close quarters with someone but got over any issues soon enough and now co-inhabited quite nicely.

Bethany Lin was the youngest, 22, with short (shoulder length) brown hair and dark brown eyes. On the whole she was quite pretty, except for one thing-she had a _horrible_ problem with zits. The miserable little things appeared on her arms, on her face, and on her back. She dealt with them but was of the mindset that these, along with her stocky frame from enjoying the outdoors so much, features made her unattractive, despite what her friends said to boost her up. Even though she was the youngest, she still has the most vivacious personality of the three, often the first to speak up when something had to be talked over. She is an exceptional cook as testified by Dani's tribute to her scrambled eggs and is currently employed by a large chain retail store by the house that they jointly rented. She was currently studying to be a geologist in university. And while she enjoyed being outdoors, she was also rather clumsy-the person most likely to break any given limb at any given time.

Danielle 'Dani' Trujo had pin straight blonde hair with sharp glittering blue eyes and a spotty complexion, meaning that she occasionally got pimples on her face but for the most part was lucky in that department. Currently, insofar as employment went, Dani was the owner of a small but prestigious animation studio. Occasionally, she took on students but not often-for the most part she was simply too busy. The artist was 23 so the fact that she owned a drawing studio at her age was quite an accomplishment. Of the three girls, Dani was the one who was most girly, her room decorated almost entirely in pink and the like. The other two didn't really have any opinions on this one way or the other but were careful to avoid the blonde's room on a sunny day-the glare was blinding.

Finally, Crystal 'Crys' Succhi. She had the longest hair of the three, wavy reddish hair…and oddly enough, violet eyes. When Crystal and Bethany had first met as children, the first thing that the brownette had noticed was the other's eyes. Crystal had been forced to take the time to explain that, while the official diagnosis was that she was partially albino, but since she had no other albino features, this made no sense to her or her family. Crystal was 23 as well, and was also the proprietor of a small dance studio. This fact kept her teaching dance most of the time and what little spare time she had was usually devoted to the next major production her studio was putting on. The dancing gave her a lithe thin body as well as fast reflexes which she used for good…most of the time. Crystal was also a diagnosed epileptic, meaning that occasionally she'd have seizures and fall unconscious, and wake up, unable to remember what happened for a few minutes before her 'attack'.

"Why does my head hurt so much this morning?" moaned Crys, unable to focus on the dance papers anymore. Bethany smirked. "It's called a hangover. Don't worry, it's common to get one in the morning after you get completely and utterly drunk at a bar the night before." Crystal made a face and took a swig of water.

Dani abruptly stood up and pushed her plate away. "I've got to get to the studio, I've got a couple of prospective students coming in to check it out. Honestly, I don't think I'm going to take them-they aren't that good. But I've got to humor them." She pushed her chair back from the table and, getting up, put her dishes into the sink.

"I've got to get going to," Bethany studied the clock as she spoke, and bent back over her plate, swiping up some yolk with a piece of toast. "Today was supposed to be my day off but another girl got sick and Carrie called me in. I start at 11."

"Oh so I get the house to myself this afternoon?" asked Crystal, innocently, if not happily. "Yes Crystal, you can play DDR for as long and as loud as you want," smirked Dani. It was no secret, their friend's love of the game. In truth? Their friend was the regional DDR champion having beaten the champion from the year previous by almost double. Occasionally, at her dance studio, Crys would hold a seminar about how to DDR and, occasionally, Dani and Beth humored her and went.

And thus the three girls went around their daily activities.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Back in Konoha, the search had begun. In the odd chance that, whoever had kidnapped the women, had been foolish enough to send them back to the Ninja world, the Hokage and the Kazekage had immediately sent out their swiftest, stealthiest Shinobi out to search the lands. There had been no reports back yet, and everyone involved was on tender hooks about what the ANBU would say.

On the family front fences were being mended. After a stressful night of worrying about his daughter (as if worrying about his wife wasn't enough) he finally had gone after her.

After assigning two ANBU ninja to help him, he found Sienna sound asleep on top of the Hokage carvings. What bothered him, however, was that Sienna was tangled in the arms of her two best friends-the children of his old team. He wouldn't have had a problem with this…

If her two best friends were female instead of male. And if neither of them were in love with his daughter and might appreciate holding her near as more than a friend.

Gently, he woke the two boys up and they untangled from Sienna, somehow, without waking her up. All the while, the Hokage kept giving the two stern looks, trying to convey that, while this kind of behavior was okay when they were young, no longer.

Itachi sent back an equal stern look saying that 'we're not going anywhere'.

Kakashi scooped up his daughter and carried her home, cradled in his arms. 'I'll have to have a talk with Naruto, Hinata as well as Sakura and Sasuke about this,' he thought unhappily.

In Suna, Kenji seemed to be adjusting to the pain of being separated from his mother. Not that the pain had gone away, rather, he was learning to tolerate it. It helped when Keiko was nearby because of how much she looked like their mother.

Gaara hadn't slept since Mika had vanished the day before.

OoOoOoOoOoOo_ In Suna, unidentified location_

"_Hey Kyoshi, good to see you. I would've thought that Gaara would've sent you to search for his wife." Nakara Kai stepped from the shadows and greeted his best friend with a pat on the back. Kyoshi, brown haired and almost black eyes glanced over to his friend. _

_His dark eyes glittered with a cold triumph. "Yes… I thought he might too. Which would've been ironic considering I know what happened to his Mika."_

_Issac Kyoshi and his best friend Nakara Kai were part of an underground, very notorious terrorist group that existed within Suna. The Desert Death._

_A group entirely devoted to ridding their beloved village of all 'demon vessels' and the like._

_In other words? A group entirely devoted to ridding the village, and possibly the world (if they could help it) of Gaara._

A/N- (1) Pronounced 'Chris'

Here's the next chappie….Review what you have read!!!


	6. Chapter 6

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter-RoxasRocks, ReiKai101, Kyuubi92, puppy444219, Seyann, goyankeesbooredsox, Beth lee and Loku. Read and Review this chapter please!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 6

The room was dark. Curtains had been drawn across the windows to prevent light entering, and the ANBU guarding the door had express orders not to let anyone inside-it was perfectly silent within that room, to allow those within to rest.

In the room, sitting around one of the smaller conference tables, were three shapeless lumps. Stuck in a half-sitting position, due to the swivel chairs that held them up, their torsos were slumped against the woody surface and their even breathing indicated that they were all asleep.

They were like that-motionless, just resting- for about an hour before one of them finally spoke.

"I'm so glad that Shikamaru and Temari are letting us dump the kids on them at a time like this. So…how has it been for you guys?" asked Gaara in a dead voice. Neji and Kakashi looked up from where their respective heads had been laying flat on the table. Neji straightened his forehead protector and sighed. "I've barely gotten any sleep," he admitted slowly. "Misaho is traumatized-she keeps having nightmares, keeps seeing the moment her mother disappeared in her dreams and she wakes up screaming. At first she thought that Michelle left because she didn't want us anymore…. how do you explain to a six year old that her mother didn't leave her by choice?"

He sighed and continued, "Yoichi…he's becoming…very much as I was before my fight with Naruto in the chunnin exams all those years ago." Neji rested his forehead on his hand and felt the cool metal of his protector. "Has it really only been a week?"

"According to the calendar, yes," said the Hokage, pushing his cap back on his head. "I know what you mean though Neji, It has seemed much longer…agonizingly longer." He sighed and folded his hands, resting his elbows on the table, much like the Uchiha did in his younger days. "Sienna and I…I've spoke to you about this before. We've never gotten along-we just keep _fighting._ Seyann always kept the peace. And Angel just goes around the house similar to a ghost-you know how he was with Seyann."

Kakashi looked over at Gaara. "How's Kenji doing?"

Gaara made a noise in the back of his throat. "Awful. Keiko must be more like Mika than we thought, though, because…well, he still cries but it seems to be lessened somewhat when he's around his sister. But it's still hard, listening to his cries."

Neji looked up. "Do you think it's because of Seyann?" Kakashi looked at the Hyuuga, confused. "What do you mean, 'because of Seyann'? What could my wife have done to be the cause and effect of all this?"

"I'm not saying…she didn't _do_ anything but do you think, maybe because she's a demon vessel for Celina-maybe someone wanted to get to her?" Kakashi mulled this over.

"It could be that…. we've never really had a problem with people going after her for being a demon vessel _before_ but that's not to say it couldn't happen… But then," he looked up at the other two. "How would the person in question know that Seyann's a demon vessel? It's a secret we've tried to keep and anyone bad who might've found out about it is dead-they were on the receiving end of Celina's chakra."

Just then, something in Gaara's head clicked-it actually clicked when Neji mentioned demon vessels, however, it took a second for him to pick up on it. He recalled an issue that had arose when he had first confronted his feelings for Mika and had told her so-only to tell her the day after that it had been a mistake, because if he had anyone precious to him, than they would subsequently be used by the terrorist group to get the Kazekage out of Suna.

As was the case now-or so he suspected.

"It's not because she's a demon vessel," he interrupted the two slowly. "It's because I'm a demon vessel." Neji and Kakashi looked over at the Kazekage in disbelief. "It's because of me…" he said again, in disbelief.

"What do you mean Gaara? If it was because of you why were Mika, Sey and Chelle taken?" Gaara shook his head. "They'll celebrate when they realize they've got another demon vessel out, but Seyann and Michelle were collateral damage. They were after Mika." The Kazekage closed his eyes and massaged his temple. Neji voiced the thoughts of the other two, after exchanging a look with Kakashi. "What do you mean, we don't understand"

"Remember back when I was trying to persuade myself that I shouldn't get close to Mika? Kakashi, you'll remember better." The Hokage nodded and the sand ninja continued. "Well, it was because of a terrorist group that exists in Suna. They call themselves the Desert Death. They are entirely devoted to removing myself and any trace of Shukaku from the village of Suna-and this proves that they'll stoop to anything. They took Mika, no doubt, in an effort to break me-I say I'll get out and they give her back."

"Wonderful," said Neji in a sarcastic tone. "Now, what are you going to do about it?" "Very little is known about this group. The members are sworn to secrecy –not allowed to reveal any plans. You don't understand how radical this group is-I've lost black ops ninja to this group, trying what I'm going to have to try again."

He sighed. "Okay, I'm going back to Suna. I've gotta move quickly so I'll leave Kenji and Keiko here-tell them that I love them and I'll be back soon. I have one ANBU-Isaac Kyoshi. He's one of my best and if he can't do it than I doubt that anyone can."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kyoshi knelt before the Kazekage. "Your mission, Kyoshi, is to infiltrate the Desert Death. I know that I've sent Nins to do this before and that yes, they haven't come back but you're one of my best. Find out of this 'Desert Death' had anything to do with my wife's disappearance."

"Yes, Lord Kazekage." The sand ANBU inclined his head, his brownish black eyes glittering.

Before the Kazekage dismissed the ANBU with a wave of his hand, he reminded the Ninja of something. "When you're poking around this group, Kyoshi, be careful. I can't afford to lose a good ninja right now."

"Yes Lord Kazekage." "Dismissed."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

_Kyoshi sat at a table with three other people. Kai sat opposite him and, at the foot of the table sat the third member of the council, Sumira._

_Ashita Sumira was a wild girl with a very obvious chip on her shoulder towards the Kazekage, although the reason was as of yet, unknown to Kyoshi . She was, physically a walking contrast. Her hair was slightly wavy and very black, however, her complexion was icy pale and her eyes were a snow white and pupil less. Kyoshi had heard rumors to the end that Sumira had a Kekki Genkai, with which she could completely hypnotize an enemy and draw them into an illusion in which their worst fear was coming true-it came to the point where some ninja were influenced to kill themselves._

_His best friend, Nakara Kai, had no real grudge against Gaara, however, had joined for his friend. He had sandy blonde hair and his eyes were a translucent green flecked with gold. For reasons beyond the comprehension of Kyoshi (and the sand ANBU wasn't sure he wanted to know), Kai was extremely well versed in both physical torture jutsu and mental torture ninjutsu._

_Then, there was the leader of the council, Akia Kendo. A man in his fifties, with brown (but graying) hair, Kendo had been on the council of the former Kazekage, Gaara's father. Being the only council member at the time, to oppose the implanting of Shukakku into an innocent child, he formed the group once it had become apparent that Gaara was unable to control the demon's bloodlust. The group had diminished somewhat when Gaara had become Kazekage, however, true members had stayed and were completely devoted to the cost. Kendo was skilled at illusions and taijutsu._

_Kyoshi himself was skilled in a little bit of everything, being an ANBU of sand, he had to be. His reasons for joining the Death? When he was younger, Sand was involved in a war with Mist. Officially, Mist had started the war, however, Kyoshi firmly believed that Gaara, being the bloodthirsty person he was, initiated the war to satisfy his bloodlust. Kyoshi's parents had been lost. Kyoshi had grown, hating the Kazekage for what had happened, blaming his parent's death on him._

"_Several days ago, I attacked the Kazekage's group at an amusement park in the other world." The group perked up at this. "May I ask what you did Kyoshi?" asked Kendo._

"_It's a technique I developed. After luring the wife of the Kazekage as well as Gaara's cousin-the wife of the Hokage-and the wife of Hyuuga Neji onto an amusement ride. The ride, was of course, an illusion. After I knew that they couldn't escape, I used the jutsu." Kyoshi grinned broadly. "I sent them through a void, erased their memories, changed their looks, names and memories…and put a physical and permanent separation between the husbands and wives._

_Kai and Sumira both grinned broadly. "Good Job Kyoshi," smirked Sumira._

_Kendo, however was less than pleased. He ran a hand through his graying hair. "Kyoshi, do you have any idea what you've done?" he thundered._

A/N-Yes, I am evil to make such a cliffie. Read and Review!!


	7. Chapter 7

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter- Kyuubi92, Loku, RoxasRocks, Seyann, puppy444219, and Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame. Read and Review!

Disclaimer-Don't own Naruto

Chapter 7

Kyoshi's eyes widened as he sat in his council chair, stunned by the turn of events. Never, not in a thousand years, would he have thought that his supposed 'stroke of genius' be received as such. "I don't un-understand Kendo-Sama…" he stammered. Kai, as well as Sumira looked at their leader, shock written on their faces.

"Yeah, Kendo-Sama, why are you so mad? I'm sure Kyoshi was only acting as she saw fit!" Sumira defended from her location opposite Kendo.

This extra boost from the white-eyed woman seemed to give Kyoshi the nerve to stand up to the leader of the group. "When I cast this jutsu, it was with the thought in mind that…if I took Mika away from Suna…even away from this world, and erased her memory, Gaara might be too distraught to care and we might –finally- be able to drive him out of Suna."

Kendo sighed. "Yes, if he was the emotionally volatile psycho he was when he was younger but no more. Kyoshi, Mika is Shukaku's life mate, you never stopped to consider that did you? The fact that they're separated may make him a little more emotionally unstable but he's no fool –he still has his children to think about. But he will search relentlessly for her. And this sudden change will keep him more on his toes. If anything all you and your misguided jutsu have done is cause it to become exponentially harder for us to get him out of Suna."

Kendo stood up and walked over to a map of the countries. "And you've involved Fire Country. The so-called 'collateral damage' was none other than Mika's best friends. An Uchiha who is also married into the Hyuuga clan and the wife of the Hokage himself. This could cause a war between our villages if they ever find out who caused the women to go missing –and if what you say is true, they already know. Kyoshi you have single handedly brought down the wrath of not only the person this group is devoted to getting rid of but the entire leaf village on the head of this organization. The Hokage, the Hyuuga, and even Gaara will search relentlessly for the missing women and will show no qualms about destroying Desert Death in the process."

His dark eyes were filled with shock. "B-But…I…" None of these possibilities had gone through his head before he had done…what he had done.

"Sumira, Kai, leave us, I wish to speak to Kyoshi alone."

Silently the girl member and the best friend of the guilty party filed out of the room after a polite bow to their leader.

After they had gone Kendo stood behind Kyoshi, while the latter looked at the table. "Kyoshi, ever since you joined, your head has been filled with nothing but thoughts of revenge for what happened to your family. Revenge, however, is becoming the only thing you think about –you seem consumed by it. It's not healthy and I tell you, it can be dangerous. I wash my hands of this whole ordeal. I tampered with a jutsu like this when I was younger –I assume you know what the counter jutsu requires?" Numbly, Kyoshi nodded. "I fail to see how you alone can reverse the jutsu for three affected individuals. I will not lose any good personnel for this foolish endeavor. If anyone chooses to help you it's on their own head."

Kendo walked out and left the Suna ANBU alone.

As soon as the leader had gone, Kai and Sumira hurried back in. "Kyoshi…" said the girl concerned.

"I shouldn't have done it."

"Nonsense. You couldn't have known that things would turn out as they did! You acted as you saw fit, as you planned. So what now?" Kyoshi looked up at his best friend.

"Kendo-Sama told me that he washes his hands of the matter. I'm to reverse the jutsu, although I know I can't do it alone. Basically, I have to find two willing volunteers because he won't assign anyone to help me." Kyoshi ran a hand through his brown hair as he spoke.

"You only have to find one willing volunteer." Kai was the speaker. "What? Kai, no, I can't ask you to help me with this. It could end up with you dying..." Kai gave a dry chuckle, his green eyes sparkling with slight mirth. "Kyoshi I joined Desert Death with you, you don't think that I'm going to simply abandon you because there's a death risk do you?"

"Forget about finding any more volunteers, I'll help you as well."

"Sumira, I don't think Kendo will take too kindly to his entire council going on a mission like this. I don't want you to go." Her pure white eyes burned with something he had never seen in them before. "You would have to tie me to my council chair to prevent me from coming Kyoshi."

"Sumira, no. Kai, come on. I need to report to Gaara and then we'll head to the other world. Pack –we'll be there for a while. Now, I've already implanted certain memories…."

The two boys walked away leaving Sumira alone.

She had to admit, watching their backs like that hurt, especially back of the dark haired one. Then she clenched her fist. "You're not leaving Suna without me boys –you just don't know it yet."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Kyoshi. How did you do? Report." Gaara stood from his desk, the second the dark haired Shinobi had strolled though the door and given him a little bow.

"Forgive the delay Kazekage-Sama, I got tied up. Unfortunately, despite trusting me, the Desert Death didn't really give out any information about the location other than the fact that it's…I believe the terminology they used was 'beyond the mirrors'. Forgive me, sir, but it made no sense to me."

It made perfect sense, however, to the Kazekage. "Thank you, Kyoshi, I knew I could count on you. I'm going to Konoha, please leave a message for Kankuro and tell him that he's in charge here, for now." After Kyoshi nodded, Gaara left the fastest way possible –via a swirl of sand.

Kyoshi walked out of Kazekage Tower, after leaving a message with the secretary and immediately Kai stepped out of the shadows. "You told him they were in the other world? Why not just tell him where they are?"

"Because I want this to be at least a little hard on him. Come on, let's go. I have a 'date' tonight."

The black haired girl with equally black eyes, who followed them right at their heels in the shadows, flinched at the man's statement.

Kendo watched from his balcony as his three council members left Suna.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"This house is a freaking mess." Crystal who stood in the kitchen and surveyed all before her proclaimed this in an irritated voice.

"And what do you intend to do about that?" asked Bethany in a bit of an amused voice. "You've never seemed to mind before what the house looked like. The three of us –we aren't exactly the neatest people in the world."

"Yes, but that was before…Dani, can you please clean up all those drawings on the table?" "Before what?" asked Dani as she complied and cleaned up her portfolio (which was spread all over the table).

"Before my boyfriend was going to come over to have dinner here tonight. Now, give me a hand and help me tidy up?"

Laughing the girls complied and, as they saying goes –many hands make light work. The house was clean before they knew it.

Beth and Dani ended up in the living room, lounging on the couch, exhausted after the cleaning frenzy. "How did your apprentice interview go Dani?" Said artist instructor snorted. "Horrible. She wanted to be an artist because she wanted to be a caricature drawer. I told her to take her portfolio and go to comic book school. Her application art showed promise but the real stuff? Horrible."

"I'll take your word for it. Oh, that's where that cat went…CRYS!!! WE FOUND HER!!!" The white cat padded around from behind the couch, and head butted the dangling hand. Bethany smiled and scratched it behind the ears. "Hey there Lucky…"

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. After exchanging a glance, the two got up and went to stand in the kitchen while her friend flurried towards the door. "Hey!!" A kissing sound. And then a male voice reciprocating. "How are you?"

Before too long, they came around the corner, hand in hand. The boy in question had dark brown hair and even darker brown eyes. There was an easygoing air about him and a friendly look to his mouth. He didn't have to say two words –Bethany didn't trust him.

"Ladies, this is Kyoshi, my boyfriend."

A/N-Review what you have read!!!!

I'm going to be writing a Naruto Valentines Day fan fiction. I have the plot all figured out and it's probably going to be as long as With A Big Red Bow, however I have no pairing. So…VOTE!!

KakaSaku or GaaSaku?


	8. Chapter 8

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter Kyuubi92, puppy444219, Hatake Sienna (aka Seyann…she got an account) RoxasRocks and Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame. Oh, and for the Valentines day story, Gaara/Sakura won. Read and Review!!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 7

"Hokage-Sama, we went all through Snow country, nothing." Kakashi narrowed his eyes and looked at the map before him, while the ANBU squad in front of him waited for their next orders. "Okay…." He traced his hand over the map. "Check the unnamed area cornered between Wind, Grass and Fire. All the claimed countries have been checked, so we need to start checking out the little unclaimed sections. Have a rest and get on your way by tomorrow morning at the latest. Dismissed." The ANBU leapt out of the Hokage's office with lightning speed.

"What do you think? They haven't found them yet and they've searched all the lands." Neji was stationed in a chair next to the Hokage's desk –he had been a somewhat permanent fixture in the Hokage's office for a while, always there during the day while his children were at the academy. At night, he went home and fed his children, held Misaho when she cried and took what sleep he could –not enough as testified by the bags under his eyes.

Sienna and Kakashi had reconciled, and Sienna was visibly attempting to not butt heads with her father as much, which caused some manner of peace in the household. Kakashi had accepted that, when the two young boys curled up with his daughter it was because they were comforting her. He merely warned them that, should it ever happen again, they would be prohibited from going near his daughter again. Angelus was recovering –having Yoichi to play with was helping.

"I think that whoever took them are hiding them in a remote location, somewhere we wouldn't think to look. I hope Gaara gets that information from Desert Death soon, we need it if we want to find anything." A commotion outside startled the two out of their conversation.

And the Kazekage strode into the room. "Call your ANBU back from the search."

This pronouncement caught the other two off guard. "What? Why?" asked an incredulous Hokage.

"Are you suggesting that we give up on the women? Gaara, it's only been a little over a week…we can't just give up on them!"

The Kazekage's jade eyes narrowed dangerously. "I never said that Hyuuga," he hissed. "I merely told Kakashi to call off the search parties. I would never give up on Mika."

"Why? I need a good reason before I send out every single messenger hawk in my aerie."

"Because searching in this world is futile." He sighed. "I spoke with Kyoshi just earlier today. They're in the other world, beyond the mirror, according to what his recon in Desert Death told him." His voice turned bitter. "When we left to come back here, we left them behind. I'm sure whoever used the Jutsu were laughing their head off when we left."

The other two sat in a stunned silence. Finally, Gaara broke the silence, calling the other two out of their stunned reveries. "So I suggest we get ready to go to the other world?" he said in a sarcastic voice. This seemed to startle the others back to their senses. Neji jolted to his feet and raced out the door, to gather his family, while Kakashi (who was still at his desk) jolted out a quick note on a piece of paper, sealed it and wrote another note.

After calling his secretary into the room, he handed her the two sealed pieces of paper along with simple instructions. "This one to the Hyuuga compound –make sure it's delivered to Naruto's hands- and this one to my daughter." The secretary was gone before Gaara had time to blink.

"Naming Naruto as your proxy Hokage?" Kakashi nodded. "Good choice. I chose Kankuro." Gaara stood up. "As a matter of fact, I'm going back to Suna for a bit. I've got to get Keiko and Kenji packed up to leave." He vanished.

With him gone, Kakashi set about recalling the ANBU.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Sienna rested her head against her desk. Except for Itachi and Kame, who knew she didn't particularly like sympathy, everyone was telling her how sorry they were that Seyann was gone. She kept waving them off until; finally, she had lost her temper at one person, causing everyone else to avoid her for the rest of the day.

Except for Itachi and Kame of course.

Ever since they had fallen asleep together, that horrible night, things had been…awkward. Itachi was about a degree cooler towards her, probably because, while she had been entangled in both of their arms, she had almost automatically turned towards Kame. And if this had caused him to be slightly cooler to the girl involved, it had severely, and possibly irrevocably damaged his friendship with Kame.

Itachi now behaved to his old friend as though they had never met in the first place. And Kame was acting just as badly. Oh, they tried to keep it in around their friend of course, but it wasn't going to well.

Sienna was quite aware that, very soon, she'd have to say something in order to stop the two fighting. Very soon she'd have to choose. And she had absolutely no idea who she was going to chose.

"Hatake Sienna?" Her head shot up off of the desk and she looked at the woman standing in the door.

"Yes?"

"A message from your father." Sienna shot out of her seat and down the aisle as fast as her feet could carry her. Tearing through the wax seal on the letter, she read the contents and before anyone could speak, she tore out of the room.

Itachi and Kame took one look at each other. Kame broke the silence. "Can we not be stubborn for a minute while she needs us?"

"Agreed." They followed their friend.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kyoshi threw his bag in anger against the hotel room wall. "WHY ARE YOU HERE???!!!" he roared. "I TOLD YOU TO STAY IN SUNA!!!"

The black haired girl with the pure white eyes stood defiantly in front of the raging ninja. "Yes, Kyoshi, that's what you told me to do, but I don't take my orders from you, do I?"

His eyes narrowed from frustration, but he was trapped. She was a good arguer "You don't Sumira, but it's a respect thing. Clearly, you don't respect me enough to…" She interrupted him.

"Without me, how do you intend to even try to break the jutsu on all the girls? You need three ninja, you only have two. Add me, that's three. Very clearly you missed the maths lesson at the academy."

"We would've found someone."

Sumira snorted. "Yeah, right. Look just co-operate with me Kyoshi, okay? I'm not going back to Suna willingly, and if you try to make me, I'll just go into hiding in this world, pick a girl, and reverse it myself."

"You take your life into your own hands," hissed Kyoshi, storming out of the room.

Once he was gone, Sumira was drained of all strength. She found herself collapsed onto the bed staring at the ceiling. "That went well," came the dry comment as Kai's head appeared in her line of vision.

"Come on Kai, you had to know that I wasn't going to stay in Suna," she looked up at him with a pleading look in her eyes.

"I knew that, and you knew that, but I guess Kyoshi thought that you would listen to him."

"As if. We've been together as a squad for too long. For him to not allow me to go with you is just wrong."

"That…and…" Kai sat down and Sumira rolled over to look at him.

"What is it?"

"You…love him…don't you?"

Sumira smiled bitterly and looked down. "It's that obvious, isn't it?"

A/N-I didn't like this story. Period. No ideas….(SEYANN HELP!!!!!) Read and Review!


	9. Chapter 9

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter. Hatake Sienna (SEYANN!!!) RoxasRocks and puppy444219. Read and Review!!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 9

"So, tell me. What did you think of Kyoshi?" Crystal giggled like a schoolgirl with a first crush, rocking in her chair. "I mean, yes, I know he's good look looking and doesn't he have the sweetest personality? But seriously, don't let that impair what your opinion is…tell me?"

"He's…nice," responded Dani carefully. "He is…fairly attractive, but not my type. Glad you found someone though, you've been moping around for a while." Dani gave the smiling girl a hug.

"I don't like him." The two embracing girls turned, surprised. Bethany stood at the counter, forcefully slicing carrots for that night's salad. The knife blade made a dull whacking sound against the chopping board, never missing a beat.

"What…do you mean?" Crystal's voice cracked, and the hurt was obvious.

"I mean there's something about his personality, about his aura that just rubbed me the wrong way. He seems familiar from somewhere but I'm not quite sure. What I do know, however, is that he's wrong for you. I don't think you should stay with him."

"Bethany, easy…" whispered Dani, but it was too late. Crystal's eyes filled up with tears of fury.

"You. The girl who likes everyone, the girl who never wants to ruffle anyone's feathers, the girl who can see the good in anyone, chooses to find fault in the first guy who I care about?" Her voice filled with disbelief. "Who do you think you are?"

Bethany laid the knife down and turned around, facing her friends. "I think I'm one of your closest friends. I think I'm someone from who you asked an honest opinion. I gave it to you. I don't like him. There is minimal chance that I will grow to like him. And I will firmly believe that you should ditch him now before you fall too hard for him."

"For your information, _Bethany,"_ the last word was hissed. "I've never felt this way about anyone. Ever. Just because you have such a hard time finding someone to be with, gives you no right to act out in jealousy just because I've found someone who might want to be with me…and…"

"I'm hardly_ jealous_ of you and Kyoshi, he's not exactly a trophy!"

"…And I'm not going to speak to you, Bethany Lin, until you accept that Kyoshi and I are going to be together for a long time!"

Crys stormed out of the house, her red hair fluttering behind her, dancing like an angry flame. Bethany turned back to her carrots and, picking up her knife, began to heatedly hack up the roots. "Beth did you have to come out and say it like that?"

"Yes. She deserves to know how I feel, even if it's not what she wants to hear," Bethany sighed. "And it's not going to be easy going. We're both stubborn when we put our minds to it."

"I'm going after Crys, make sure she's not getting in trouble, and then I have to get some milk. Bethany, I agree with you, just so you know. There's something about him, something secretive. But she's our friend, and she cares about him. Couldn't there have been some other, easier way to tell her?" Bethany shook her head.

"Not that I could see." Dani shook her head, and left without another word.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Her blue eyes raked the grocery shelves, searching for something to fix for dinner that night. As she mindlessly searched, her mind wandered back to when she had spoken with Crystal.

The problem had been was that Crystal had been standing just outside the door, and had heard Dani say to Bethany that she didn't like Kyoshi. Crystal had exploded at the blonde and had furiously ripped into her for not liking her new boyfriend, and for lying to her when asked for an opinion.

Wrapping a hand around a can of baked beans, she paused and looked down. Whoever thought it would come to this. Crys wasn't speaking to either one of them, and basically, the house had been divided into 'sides'. Placing the baked beans into her basket, she continued down the aisle, her brain a million miles away.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Sumira stood at the end of the aisle and formed one hand into a hand seal that Kyoshi had showed her. Quickly, under her breath, she whispered, "You remember me…"

She sent a wave of chakra towards the shopping woman.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Dani? Is that you?" Startled, the blonde looked up. Meeting a pair of pure white eyes, she was temporarily taken aback.

"Do I know you?"

"Maybe I have the wrong person. Never mind, I'm sorry to-"

A memory. Of a black haired girl with white eyes riding a tricycle down the street, with a blonde haired blue eyed girl standing on the back.

"Sumi!!!" Danielle suddenly shrieked, throwing her arms around the white-eyed woman. All the problems on her mind from her housemates suddenly vanished as she embraced her old friend. "I'm so sorry! It's been too long, that's why I didn't recognize you. But how could I forget those eyes?? I doubt that there's anyone else in the world with pure white eyes."

"So what have you been up to?" Sumi linked arms with Dani and the two walked off and caught up on the missing years.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The three fathers sat in the living room of Michelle's old home, with the kids' upstairs going to sleep for the night. Keiko, Sienna and Misaho shared Michelle's old room, while the three boys were bunked up in the spare room. This was their first night of many in the non-ninja world.

Kakashi had come through the mirror the day before and had made some arrangements. Lying before him on the table were three bulky envelopes, one for each of the men. "Gaara, this is yours and Neji this is yours. This is mine."

"Okay," he continued. "From Kyoshi's intelligence from inside the Desert Death, we know that the girls are located in this world. Further to that, we've found out that they are located in this country…. the United States. Now, for us three and our families to go across the country together to search for them would be impossible. Therefore, I propose this. We split up. I'll take the general west coast, Neji you take the plains and Gaara you take the general east coast."

The two sat in front of him, stunned. "According to the map, this place is huge. Do you know how long this is going to take us?" demanded the Kazekage.

"The less we argue, the more time we can spend searching for our wives. I know this isn't a very good scenario but it's the best we've got. Are you agreed?"

"Yes," both agreed.

"Good. Open the package." Each tore open their manila envelopes and dumped the contents out onto the table. Out slid several papers, little black books, several pieces of plastic, and a thicker piece of plastic with a screen on the front that, as Gaara discovered, flipped open.

"What's this?"

"Okay. I had to do this yesterday, now it's your guys' turn. Crash course in living in the USA. This," he held up a thin blue plastic card. "Is called a debit card. It has a number you punch into a machine and it can be used to pay for things. We have an unlimited amount of money, so no worries about it running dry. This," he held up a similar card, except this one had a small silver patch on it. "Is a visa card. It's called a credit card. It is similar to the debit card but these have to be paid off once a month. Try not to use them unless the place you are at requires a credit card, paying them off can be a hassle."

"What's this thing then?" Neji held up his piece of plastic with the screen, his black as opposed to Gaara's red.

"It's called a cell phone…"

And on it went, into the night.

A/N-LOL!! I just had to put the crash course in living in the real world 101 for the boys…I mean, they really have no idea what they're getting into!! Read and Review!


	10. Chapter 10

A/N-Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter-puppy444219, Kyuubi92, Demira, RoxasRocks and Hatake Sienna. Sorry this is a little late, I was somewhere without an internet yesterday and this morning. Oh, and forgive the anime bashing in this chappie!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 10

It was the day after Dani had reunited with her childhood friend and she couldn't be happier. Sitting in the restaurant of choice, across from the girl with the white eyes, she marveled at the fact that she hadn't changed a bit since the last time she had seen her.

When they were younger, and had both been living in Western Canada, they had been extremely close friends. Next-door neighbors…they had taken to calling each other next-door sisters, if Dani's memories served her right. Together all through high school, until grade 12 when Sumi had made the decision to attend school in Japan as an exchange student. She had gone off and Dani hadn't heard another word. Granted, not long after, her parents had both died in an accident, and she had moved to Southern California. There, she had met up with Bethany and Crys and had made friends to replace the one who had moved away.

Except now her friend was sitting in front of her. It seemed too good to be true…but it was!

"So what have you been up to?" asked Sumi, taking a sip of her pop. "I remember when we were younger, you wanted to be…a dressmaker was it?"

Dani laughed. "If you can remember me ever wanting to be a dressmaker, your memory is better than mine. No, remember how I took all those art classes when we were in high school? Well, I put those to use and I opened up my own animation studio. Have you ever heard of 'Fan Animation Studios'?"

Sumi nodded. "Of course I've heard of Fanimation. That's what it's called in Japan." The black haired girl's jaw dropped. "You mean to tell me that you're the one who owns that studio?"

"Yup! Fan Animation is all mine. I take students every now and then but most of the people don't show enough promise. I'm actually looking for someone right now but I haven't been able to find anyone. What about you? You went to Japan for grade 12, how was it?"

"Well…it was fine. A little weird. I mean, aside from the fact that I had to learn a new language from scratch, everything is so different over there. There was all this big hype about…okay, remember when we were younger, in high school, and there was a club devoted to that cartoon stuff, anime?"

Dani, who was taking a drink, snorted and nearly inhaled some of her virgin margarita. "Yeah…" she said, laughing. "Remember how much we laughed at the members?"

"Even though some of the members were our close friends?" Dani nodded, her hand clapped against her mouth, shoulders shaking.

"That's what made it so funny. Anyways, what about that?"

"Well, there's one show that's really high in popularity over there…it's called Naruto, it's about this guy and his quest to become a ninja…"

"Sumi_ don't _tell me you got hooked."

"Do I look like I got hooked on a cartoon?" Dani shook her head and Sumi continued. "Anyways, while I didn't get hooked on the show itself I did see a couple episodes. When you're over there and you make friends it's kind of unavoidable. It did sort of give me an interest in Taijutsu and martial arts. I got my black belt. Actually, I'm in America for my Dojo. A three-man squad was sent over to promote martial arts. It's two guys and me. We've been in the States for about a month."

That caught Dani's attention. "Wow, martial arts? I really can't see you doing that…. you were so girly when we were younger…anyways. How's the love life? Interested in anyone on your squad?" she threw in slyly.

Her old friend's face dropped. "Well, yes, actually I am." Her pale eyes stared at the linen tablecloth. Taking a breath, Sumi launched into an explanation. "His name is Kyoshi…"

They spent the rest of the afternoon catching up. The only thing that had Dani concerned was that, it sounded like Crystal's new boyfriend was Sumi's secret love.

That might present a problem.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Keiko lay in bed, staring at the stucco ceiling, listening to the slow even breathing of the other two girls and thinking back to the day that had just passed.

That morning, while they had been eating, Sienna had heard a scratching sound in the basement. At first, Yoichi had slyly suggested that it was a mouse, causing Misaho to scream and jump up onto her chair. After calming her down by assuring her that there was no chance it was a mouse in the basement, Gaara had gone down to look into whatever had caused the scratching sound, only to drag Uchiha Itachi and Uzumaki Kame up to the kitchen by the ears.

The two had apparently decided that, since they were Sienna's friends, they should come into this world with her. Kakashi acted as Hokage and ordered them back to Konoha, but the two refused. Sienna intervened on their behalf and now the two were bunked with Kenji, Angel and Yoichi.

This was her first time, since she was younger and that whole thing where Itachi had kidnapped her brother. She had been only three at the time but her memory was strong and she remembered. In fact, she remembered sleeping in this very room, with Sienna beside her.

Sienna. The girl, besides being her equal as the daughter of a Kage, had been her closest friend since they had been born. Things of late, however, had changed. Itachi and Kame, who had always been closer to Sienna than to Keiko, mostly because of the gap between the villages, recently had discovered that Sienna was undeniably a girl. And, for whatever reason, both decided to pursue her.

Keiko wasn't interested in Kame. The blonde knucklehead who so resembled his father in personality…Sienna could have him. But the fact that the one she cared about, Itachi, treated her like a bug on top of the fact that he was clearly attracted to Sienna, hurt. And the fact that Sienna was doing nothing to discourage the Uchiha hurt even more. Keiko had made no bones about wanting Itachi to her friend and the two had even conspired at one point to try and divert attention from Sienna to Keiko but the plans had never come to fruition.

"Keik-Chan I know you're awake. You're breathing is all wrong. What's up?" So caught up had she been with her thoughts, that she hadn't noticed the person in question wake up. Rolling over to put her back to Sienna, she pulled the covers closer to her face to hide her expression and closed her eyes.

"Nothing's wrong, just thinking."

"Liar." Keiko heard the creak of Sienna's bedsprings. The next second, the silver haired daughter of the Hokage was crouching beside her bed, poking her best friend, attempting to coax Keiko into rolling over. "I know you better than that, and I saw your face. What's wrong?"

Keiko sighed, released the blankets and rolled back over. "You're relentless Hatake," she said, giving Sienna a look.

"I'm you're best friend Sabaku. Now tell me."

Sighing, Keiko sat up quietly and came clean to Sienna the conundrum that had been running through her head about how she was falling for Itachi, and how Itachi always treated her sub human. And how she was jealous and hurt that Itachi was in love with Sienna.

"Keik-Chan…" began Sienna softly. "You know I don't love Itachi. He's a friend and will never be anything more. He just needs to realize it. I mean, look at it this way…remember the stories that my dad always tells us about when Naruto, Uncle Sasuke and Aunt Sakura were on his squad? Uncle treated Aunty as though she were beneath him and look how they ended up –married with three children."

"Uncle Sasuke was never in love with someone else."

"Must you always shoot down my arguments?"

"Yes." Keiko smiled.

Sienna rolled her eyes. "Well it doesn't matter how Itachi feels towards me. I've noticed lately that they're starting to become more and more like rivals than like best friends. I have to make my choice soon and it'll be Kame. That'll leave Itachi to you. And I'll help you, I promise." Her eyes suddenly softened. "Why were you so willing to talk about this? You never like talking about guys and how you feel towards them."

"Because of Aunt Sakura and Ino-San. I didn't want us to get into a rivalry over a guy. Sienna-Chan…"

"Keiko!!!" A call from her brother's room interrupted the conversation.

"I've got to go Sienna. We'll talk tomorrow."

Getting up from her bed, Keiko brushed stray hair out of her face and walked across the hall, into the room that Seyann had stayed in when the moms had stayed here. Making her way to her brother's bed, she knelt beside it, clicked on the small lamp beside his bed and said, in a soft whisper, "what's wrong Kenji?"

"Keiko-nii-chan, why do I remember this room? I remember being trapped by daddy's sand and fighting mommy…I hurt mommy…"

Quickly, Keiko hushed her brother. "It's okay Kenji," she said soothingly, brushing some of her black red streaked hair behind her ear, and rubbing him on the back. Since it was the middle of the night, and her brother was only nine, he sometimes reverted into talking like a younger kid. "It happened a long time ago. You're old enough, and if you're going to stay in the room you should hear the story. Mommy told it to me so I'll tell you. Years ago, when you were just born, a mean man named Itachi took you from mommy and dad and me…"

As Keiko told her brother the story and he started to drift back off to sleep, she was unaware of a pair of dark, forest green eyes looking at her through a haze of sleep. In the lamplight, her black hair gleamed and the red in her hair shone like a deep red ruby.

'_She looks really pretty_,' was the only coherent thought that passed through his brain before he slipped back to sleep.

A/N-I thought I'd put a little of the kids in there, they haven't been in for awhile. Read and Review!


	11. Chapter 11

A/N-Feel free to flog me for not updating last week . I was super busy. The next update shall come next weekend, sometime although not necessarily friday. Thanks to those who reviewed the last chapter-Puppy444219, Kyuubi92, RoxasRocks and Hatake Sienna. Read and Review!

Disclaimer-I Don't Own Naruto. I Also disclaim any songs mentioned in this chapter.

Chapter 11

And thus, the next day, the search for the three missing women began. Home base would be back at Michelle's old house, the house where they had come through the mirror. The game plan, however, had changed a bit. Now, instead of just splitting up and keeping in contact via cell phone, they agreed to come home and report in after a week of searching.

Keiko seemed to have a knack for technology despite her ninja upbringing and she went crazy on the phones. After listening to the radio the night previous with Sienna, the two of them picked out songs that suited each of the father's best and downloaded the ring tones to the cell phones. For Kakashi, she downloaded 'Who Let The Dogs Out?' for Neji she got 'Anyways' by Martina McBride and for her father; she downloaded a song called 'Mr. Sandman'. Then, she programmed each phone to ring specifically. That way, everyone knew who was calling whom.

Neji wasn't overly pleased with the song choice for himself, but, as Keiko pointed out, in some weird obscure way…it just suited the Hyuuga. And when Gaara protested, his daughter had just given the Kazekage puppy dog eyes and he had given right in.

And so, now, everyone was on a plane headed to different locations. There had been a little shuffle with the kids. Sienna, Keiko, Itachi and Kame went with Gaara to the mid west while the younger boys Yoichi, Angel and Kenji went with Kakashi to the west. Misaho was perfectly happy just being with her father so they stayed together on the east coast.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The first stop for the Hyuuga and his daughter was down south, in Florida. Starting in Miami, they searched relentlessly. Rather, Neji searched and Misaho darted from woman to woman asking if that person were her mother. After about a dozen times, Neji finally stopped her and told her to just look with him. "Sweetie, she's not going to be just random on the streets."

Finally, after about half a day of searching, the two stopped in a nearby park for a much needed rest. A cart vendor, similar to ones seen in Konoha were selling hot dogs on a bun, so Neji bought one for himself and Misaho. Surprisingly enough, Misaho, who was the pickiest eater out of all the kids enjoyed the hot dog with the works –ketchup, mustard, relish, onions et all.

However, halfway through her hot dog, the little girl suddenly gasped and froze. Neji, thinking she was choking on a piece too big for her, got up and asked her in an urgent voice, "Misaho are you okay?" She appeared to be breathing fine, however, her gaze was transfixed on something across the park. Before Neji could say anything, she was up, had thrown down her hot dog and was gone, running across the park faster than any normal (in other words, a child who wasn't the daughter of a Hyuuga and a Uchiha) could.

"Misaho come back!" he called. But his daughter didn't listen, instead made a beeline for a woman, who, from a distance looked a lot like Michelle, from the dark wavy hair to the almost black eyes and complexion. This woman was probably about 28, younger than Michelle but to a six year old who missed her mother, there was no difference. After all, even if she looked slightly different from Michelle, Neji _had_ told his daughter that her mother's looks had probably been altered.

From across the park, as he got up and hurried in that direction, he could hear the woman's shriek of surprise as Misaho threw herself around her legs.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The woman looked down in surprise as the little brown haired girl knit her arms tightly around her knees. Unable to move, she could only stand there as the little girl sobbed into her pants.

"Mommy!!! I'm so glad we found you!!! Daddy said you'd look different but you're still mommy!!! He said we wouldn't find you just ra…ran…ran…" her face screwed up in concentration. The lady substituted.

"Randomly?"

"Yeah!!! That's it mommy, randomly!!! He said we wouldn't find you randomly, he said you'd look different but we did!!! I'm so happy to see you!!! Guess what mommy? I just tried onions on my hot dog and I liked them!! I guess that means I'll have to try them on Ramen now…are Aunty Mika and Aunty Seyann with you too? We're sorta looking for them too but mostly for you. You scared everyone when you disappeared… "

The woman looked up, around the park for some sign of a parent. Upon seeing a man headed right for her, an apologetic look on his face, she smiled at him and untwisted the girl from her legs. "I'm just going to talk to daddy for a few minitues, okay?"

The little brunette girl smiled widely and nodded. "I'm gonna play on the swings mommy."

Straightening up, the woman watched the little girl race across the park for the last open swing. "She's very cute. My name is Anita. What's her name?" she addressed the man standing next to her.

"Misaho. And I'm Neji" answered the Hyuuga. "I'm extremely sorry about this. We lost her mother awhile back and she's had a hard time coping."

"Oh, I'm sorry…" Neji shook his head.

"No, she's not dead. She…this is going to sound strange, but she along with her two best friends were abducted in front of our eyes. We believe that they may have been given drugs to alter their memories as well as had their entire looks changed. Her best friends husbands and myself are searching all across the US because we know they're here somewhere we just don't know where. I…you do look a lot like my wife so that's probably why Misaho attacked your legs like that."

Anita didn't know what to say. On the one hand, she was late for meeting her boyfriend, but on the other hand, here was a little girl who had just lost her mother and who had just mistook herself for her mother. "Do you mind if I play with her for awhile? I'll make clear that I'm not her mother, but she just seemed so happy when she first saw me."

"Actually…." said Neji softly. "I wouldn't mind. She's happier now than I've seen her in a very long time."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

The first target city for the Kazekage, the girls, Kame and Itachi was the twin cities-St. Paul and Minneapolis in Minnesota. Upon arrival…and upon the girl's discovering The Mall Of America, it was unanimously decided that the two girls would take Gaara's debit card and 'search' the mall. Of course every store would need to be searched, that was a given.

The boys opted to search with Gaara, after watching Keiko and Sienna's eyes glaze over at the prospect of shopping. As Kame put it, "You're our friend but there's only so much we'll do."

The two girls were looking for their moms in the change room of Abercrombie and Fitch, when the subject of Itachi was once again broached. "So…. Keiko, what I said before…it's true. About me liking Kame more than Itachi. Why haven't you gone for Itachi yet?"

"Sienna, not everyone has your gung-ho personality when it comes to getting guys. Personally, I like my method. I'm going to feel him out, see if there's any way to switch his affections…and if not I'm not even gonna bother."

Keiko's cell phone rang. The older kids, all who had been recently qualified as Genin had been given cell phones when it was realized that they would be able to search on their own. Keiko's ring of choice was a country song, 'What I Really Meant To Say'. And, according to her at least, it wasn't supposed to reflect how she really felt at all. But Sienna didn't believe her.

"Yeah…okay daddy, bye." She flipped it shut. "Shopping trip is over. They're coming to take us out for lunch."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kakashi and the boys were in Southern California; having decided to do as Neji and Misaho had done, start south and work north. Having just disembarked from their plane, they were gathering the luggage from the carousel and preparing to go to the hotel.

It had only been a flash, and only for the briefest second but it was enough to make Kenji gasp in suprise, drop his bags and look up, startled.

"Uncle Kakashi, I sensed Mom."

A/N-MUWAHAHAHA!!!! CLIFFHANGER!!!!! For those of you who find it odd that Kenji can sense his mother REMEMBER THE COUNTER JUTSU USED AT THE END OF WRBB!!! There is a permanent bond between those two that nothing can really erase, not even a jutsu like this one. Read and Review


	12. Chapter 12

A/N-Thanks for the reviews from puppy444219, Kyuubi92, RoxasRocks, Hatake Sienna, Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame and ShinRa Associate. I am EXTREMELY story for the delay on this chapter, I had an extremely bad case of mental block. Read and Review!!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 12

Kakashi stared at Kenji, momentarily struck dumb. As what the boy had said sank in, Kakashi reached out and gripped his shoulder. "Are you sure? Are you absolutely sure you were sensing Mika?"

Kenji nodded, his serious expression matching Kakashi's. "It was very faint… like she was in one of those car contraptions, just zooming by. I haven't been able to sense her since that day though…so I know what it was."

Before the kid had even finished speaking, Kakashi had his cell phone out and was dialing Gaara's number.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

'_Who let the dogs out? Who, who who who…'_

Keiko and Sienna stopped watching their TV show and stared at the phone on the dresser. Kame and Itachi had gone to the workout center and Gaara was down at the convenience store next door, picking up some cereal and milk.

Keiko made the first move, because it was her father's cell phone, and picked up the thin piece of red. Flipping it open, she said into the receiver, "Uncle Kakashi? What's up?"

"_Is your father there?"_

"No, he's not…what's going on?"

"_Your brother sensed your mother."_

Keiko froze. Her grip on the phone loosened, and it fell from her hand, clattering on the cabinet. From where Sienna sat, it looked as though her normally cheerful friend had turned to cold, unresponsive stone, a look of astonishment etched on her face.

The silver haired girl leapt off the bed and snatched the phone up. "Daddy what did you say to her? She looks like she's gone into shock."

_"Sweetie, we know that they're in Los Angeles, in California. Pack your stuff and have Uncle Gaara call me as soon as he gets in."_

"Okay dad I will. Talk to you later." Sienna snapped the phone shut and reached out to touch Keiko. "Keik-chan, snap out of it. We don't know when your father's going to be back, but we need to be packed before then because you know he'll want to move."

Keiko pulled her eyes away from the spot she was staring blankly at and fixed her jade eyes on her friend. "Pack…"

"Yes that's right Keik-chan…we can pack. I'm going down to get the boys, start packing your things and I'll do mine when we get back up."

Keiko nodded dully and, as Sienna snatched a card key from the dresser and hurried out of the room, she wondered if Keiko would even move from that spot. The girl had seemingly gone into a sort trance as soon as she heard the news about her mother. When she was leaving the room, however, and the door was swinging closed, she saw that Keiko had jumped into action and was now shoving clothes back into the suitcase at a frantic rate.

The door shut behind the silver haired girl with a soft click. As soon as it was closed, she raced down the hall towards the elevator.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Kame, if you don't slow down the treadmill, you'll probably break it or burn out the engine," said Itachi in a dry voice from across the room where he was lifting weights. The son of the Kyuubi was practicing his chakra control and had the treadmill going as fast as he could possibly have it. The little bursts of chakra that he was putting out of the soles on his feet were also speeding up the tread of the treadmill.

He, however, appeared to be hardly exerted. He turned his blonde head and arched an eyebrow at his friend. "And you aren't going to draw any unwanted attention by benching almost 150 pounds? You look too slight to do something like that."

Itachi scowled, put a little bit of chakra into his arm and began to push the weights up and down. He, however, quickly dropped the weights back into the rack when the door rattled. He could also hear the treadmill slowing down. He glanced warily towards the door, pushing his black hair out of his face, and wiping the sweat away with a towel.

Suddenly, just before the door opened, he sensed Sienna's chakra. Leaping off the weight-pressing bench, he ran for the door. Just as he got there the young girl finally figured out how to work the electronic lock in a panic and she fell through the door into his arms. "Sienna, what's wrong?"

"Dad just called Uncle Gaara's cell phone –Keiko is packing our stuff as we speak. Kenji managed to sense Aunty Mika for a few moments. We're going to be going out west. You guys need to pack your bags…we're going to be headed out as soon as Gaara gets back."

"Okay." Kame had come off the treadmill and was standing beside Itachi. Itachi had released Sienna and she was now standing on her own. "We'll go back upstairs and pack." Sienna waited as the two grabbed their workout things and they headed back up.

Unfortunately, a family of 8 made it to the elevator's first –there was only room enough for one of them.

"Okay, Kame you go first. Go back up to our room and start packing. Itachi and I will take the next one." The blonde nodded and squeezed onto the elevator.

The other door slid quietly open after a few minutes, empty. The two of them got on and, after Sienna pressed the button for their floor, started to rise noiselessly.

'This is the perfect opportunity,' thought Itachi. 'Beat Kame to the punch and tell her how you feel.' "Sienna…" he looked down towards his feet.

"…Itachi, don't." Itachi froze and looked at the silver haired girl. "I know what you're going to say Itachi and please…don't. I don't feel the same way about you. I…I feel that way about someone else. And I know that someone I care about feels that way about you and…"

Despite himself, Itachi felt a slight flare of resentment. "You're talking about Keiko. I don't feel anything for her…I like you!!!" He looked up at her, his eyes desperate.

"Well then, I…I'm sorry Itachi, I really am. You're a valuable friend and someone precious to me. But not in that way. Forgive me for hurting you." Sienna's eyes were filling with tears.

The elevator dinged, the doors hissed open and the silver haired girl leapt off, racing down the hall towards her room.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kakashi, having checked in to a massive hotel and taken enough rooms for all of them to live for as long as it took, set out on a preliminary search of the city, just browsing around to see what was up. He recalled some things that Seyann liked and figured that into his equation…looking for things that she might like, things she might be drawn to. He decided to start right downtown. She always liked action, and downtown is usually where the action was.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Crystal placed her leg on the bar in the ballet studio. "That's it for today Kai. I think I'm just going to do a little workout till Dani gets here to give me a lift home." The sandy blonde haired assistant looked up from where he was stacking the CD's in the corner.

"Okay Crystal. I'll see you tomorrow." Kai smiled and left the ballet room.

After she finished stretching, the redhead put 'Everytime We Touch' on the CD player and began blaring it out. Allowing the music to just flow through her body, she began to move without thinking.

Dani walked in, just at the moment where the dance slowed. She could hear Crystal huffing and puffing out the words as she danced. "Your arms are my castle…" deep breath "your heart is my sky…they wipe away tears that I've cried…" Dani always enjoyed watching her friend dance and, as the music (along with the dance steps) sped up, she sat back and enjoyed the show.

When the song was over, and Crys was finished, Dani applauded, catching her friend rather off guard. "Dani!!! You should've told me you were there!"

"What, and have you stop dancing right when you're at the good part? Never!" Dani moved closer to the bar and began to do some mock stretches. "Watching you do ballet…" she took on a mock French accent. "Et iz ze beautiful experience!!!"

"Oh really?" smirked Crystal.

"Really." Dani leaned back against the mirrors, looking out the window. "I meant to take up ballet ages ago but it never quite worked out. I got too much into my…"

Dani, however, was cut off abruptly when she slipped on some wax that had been scrubbed on the floor to assist the ballerina students before. As her footing slipped out from under her, she felt her head smack on the hard wooden bar. And after that she knew no more.

Crystal was packing the CD's away when this happened. When her friend stopped speaking, she thought that the girl had gotten slightly sidetracked but upon hearing the sickening sound of someone hitting their head on hardwood. Whirling around, she saw her friend lying on the ground, clearly unconscious.

"Dani!!!!" shrieked the redhead as she raced over to the prostrate girl. Hurriedly positioning the girl so that she wouldn't choke on any fluids in her mouth, she was horrified by the slowly spreading pool of blood surrounding her friend's head.

"I've gotta go get help…" However, as soon as she stood and headed for the door, she felt her vision start to blur. "Oh…no…" she closed her eyes tightly and began to shake her head back and forth. Hair that wasn't captured in the tight ballerina bun floated around her face. "I can't…not now…Dani needs my help…"

But, no matter how badly her friend needed her, seizures listened to no one. Crystal's body began to convulse and she collapsed to the ground.

Outside, a silver haired man was passing. Kakashi looked through the wall sized window and saw the one girl lying on the ground and watched as the second one seemed to convulse and fall to the ground. "What!!" Quickly, he broke through the window and hurried to the twitching one's side.

"Are you okay?? Miss, can you speak to me???"

**Is that….Kakashi?** **I'm glad he's here while she's unconscious. It's the only way I can talk to him…**

"**Kakashi…is that you?" **Kakashi looked up in shock. It was impossible to tell where from the voice came…it was all around him…perhaps even in his head.

"Celina???"

A/N-Tell me what you made of this!!! Read and Review!


	13. Chapter 13

A/N-GYAH!!!! GOMEN NE MINNA-SAN!!! I cannot BELIEVE I let this go for so long. Thanks to those patient people who waited...Kyuubi92, Angelic Lily Maiden, Hatake Sienna, Puppy444219, Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame and SilverCat25. Especially Silver Cat, she gave me a jump start. Enjoy!! Read and Review!!!

Disclaimer-I don't own Naruto

Chapter 13

_It had been about fifteen long years since she had been sealed thus. She was pretty complacent with the arrangement –being a demon trapped within a vessel- more so than Kyuubi, Shukaku and the other so-called 'tailed' demons had ever been. Discontent to maintain human form, all nine had always screamed for freedom._

_However, she had gotten, in her opinion, a good deal. The body she was in was that of a skilled Kunoichi who very rarely had to fully tap the demonic chakra usually only taking leftover that the demon wouldn't miss anyways. The body never went hungry, was always well rested (she allowed her vessel sleep, mostly because she wasn't like Shukaku –she had no desire to completely take over the Kunoichi, not when the Kunoichi allowed her free reign) and was emotionally stable (most of the time). _

_So when Celina had suddenly, and abruptly been sealed about a month ago; forced back into the dark recesses of Seyann's consciousness with only about 3 seconds warning, along with the rest of her memories and chakra, bound -she hadn't taken it lying down. Strong mental chains were bound around her, restraining her physically, and she was unable to wander around her vessel's subconscious anymore. However, it hadn't been the best sealing job. Most of Celina's demonic chakra had been sealed…but not all of it. Enough to communicate for very brief spans of time, and enough to sense any enemy ninja in the area. _

_But not enough that any enemy ninja would be able to tell where the demonic chakra's source was. _

_So when the minute traces of chakra she could use sensed her vessel's chosen mate, she used the chance. Using all the chakra she could muster, she forced part of her vessel's brain to shut down so that she could communicate through the unconscious girl. _

"_**Kakashi…is that you?"**_

_The pain from exerting the limited chakra she had nearly split her insubstantial head in two. But it was worth it when he responded._

OoOoOoOoOoOo

"Celina…what's going on? Which one are you?"

"**Kakashi what sort of question is that….I'm Seyann of course. I don't have much time; I've been almost entirely sealed, I don't think I can stay out like this for long. What's going on?"**

"It's not that farfetched of a question Celina. Seyann…and Michelle and Mika for that matter, were taken from us at the same time you were sealed. Their appearances have been altered. I don't know which one you're speaking from, whether it is the redhead or the blonde. They're both unconscious although I really need to get the blonde to the hospital, I think she hit her head. She's bleeding pretty badly. Listen, since you're talking to me I can assume that you're in one of these two, and that these two must be friends meaning if there's a third one…we've found them."

**"Damn. I'd be able to tell you…but I'm physically bound. I can't wander around Seyann's subconscious anymore, can't look out her eyes to see what she sees. I'm sorry I can't be of more help Kakashi but until I can loosen these binds a bit more, there's really nothing I can do. I…." **

Celina's voice suddenly came as a jerking gasp. With a catlike yowl of pain, she squeezed out one more sentence. **"I'm….glad….you're….here…Kakashi…"**

The ballet room went deathly silent.

Taking out his cell phone, Kakashi flipped it open and dialed 911.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

As the courtesy desk girl at the store she worked in, she took the call herself. "Good afternoon, how can I help you?"

"Hello, I need to speak to one of your employees, a Bethany Lin."

"Speaking. How can I be of assistance?"

"This is St. Marcus' heath facility. According to a Kai Nakara, you're the emergency contact to Crystal Succhi and Danielle Trujo?"

Bethany's breath caught in her throat. Julie, her supervisor paused while going past the desk. "Beth?" she whispered. The brown haired girl raised a hand, signaling for her to stop.

"I am…"

"We need you to come down to the facility right away, there's been an accident."

The phone started to shake in her hand.

"What sort of accident?"

"If you would please come down to the center we will tell you all about it."

Bethany hung up the phone and began to shake all over. Julie hurried behind the desk and said, "what's going on?", while wrapping an arm around her.

"I need to go to St. Marcus'. My friends…"

"I understand. Go." Bethany left right away. Pulling out her cell phone she dialed the number that she had programmed into her phone only to appease Crystal. She really didn't want to do this.

"Kyoshi? Crystal's been in an accident, meet me at St. Marcus'."

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kakashi sat in the middle of the two girls, dozing and thinking. Now that he saw them in daylight, they were both visibly younger than his wife and her friends were supposed to be. But if there were supposed to be three friends, where was the other one?

A brown haired girl came charging into the room, her expression clearly panicked. Going to one bed, she bent over and examined Danielle's head. The doctor had stitched her up neatly and she was lying on the bed, asleep from a painkiller she had been given. After assuring herself that her friend was fine, she moved over to the other bed. Crys was hooked up to a machine that was monitoring her brain activity, which seemed normal. All evidence of a seizure seemed to have past.

She turned her gaze to the silver haired man and Bethany's breath froze in her throat. He was incredibly handsome, more so than any guy she'd ever seen before. He wore a patch over one eye and he had a killer build…and he was clearly the one that the nurse had said had brought her friends in.

Walking over to him, she gently shook him and woke him up. "Thank you very much…for saving my friends." She looked into his jet black eye…

And fell in love.

A/N- Now, does anyone except me see the problem with this?? XD The one person who it's impossible to be Seyann…is falling for Kakashi. Read and Review:D


	14. Chapter 14

A/N-I HAVEN'T FORGOTTEN THIS STORY!! I swear….And thanks to those who have reviewed the last chapter- Silver-Cat25, Gaara's Desert Rose-Hasame, Hatake Sienna, Angelic Lily Maiden, Kyuubi92, puppy444219, and Loku. Read and Review.

Disclaimer-I don't own the characters you recognize.

Chapter 14

Kakashi eyed the brown-haired girl with some amount of trepidation. Having lived with Seyann and her best friends for as long as he had, and now having a 12 year old daughter, he had learned to recognize how to read female expressions. He had some considerable pride in this skill of his.

All his years of expertise told him one thing. This young woman, the one person he knew could not _possibly_ be his beloved wife was wearing an expression of open attraction on her face. He only saw it for a split second, before she managed to mask it but that was enough. He sighed inwardly and wondered if it was too much to ask for the gods to cut them a break after what they'd been through. To have someone attracted to someone they weren't supposed to be with would only complicate the matter further.

"Hi, I'm Bethany Lin," she stated as she extended her hand towards him. "As I was saying, I really appreciate you coming here with them. I hate the thought of something happening to them. Who are you by the way? Has the doctor been in?"

The silver haired copy nin sat up in his chair. "I'm Hatake Kakashi. The doctor said that the one with the blonde hair fell and hit her head and the one with the red hair had a seizure." As he was speaking, Bethany had turned and was now examining with closer precision, the redhead's forehead. He stopped and watched as she went to the foot of the bed and flipped up the sheet, now examining the blonde's feet.

"Wax. I've warned her about how she could slip if she put that much on her floors but does she listen? Nope, why listen to me?" She was clearly disgruntled as she wiped off the blonde's feet. Straightening up, she looked over at Kakashi. "Crystal," she gestured at the other bed, "owns a ballet studio. She enjoys over-waxing her floors when it's just her dancing because it makes her feel as though she has less control and is moving more with the music. I've warned her numerous times that someone will just get hurt but she's so stubborn." Bethany signed and moved towards the other one.

As she did, another person charged into the room. He had brown shaggily cut hair and his almost black eyes looked at the one named Crystal with concern. He didn't appear to take note of Kakashi, merely directing his questions at Bethany. "What happened?"

"She had one of her seizures Kyoshi. She'll be fine, she just needs to rest right now." Kakashi could sense her barely veiled hostility towards the newcomer, and he could tell that Kyoshi could hear it too because the corner of his eyes tightened almost imperceptibly. He ran a hand along Crystal's cheek before relaxing. He looked over at Bethany. "It's a good thing you were at the studio then, when this happened."

"I wasn't." She jerked her head towards Kakashi. "He found them."

Kyoshi finally took notice of Kakashi. And when he did, his eyes bulged with first shock, then anger, then fear. It would have escaped any other person's notice, but Kakashi (a master lip reader) watched him through confused eyes as his mouth, barely moving, formed the word '_hokage…_'

After his attempt to regain control of his face failed, he turned to Bethany, all but ignoring Kakashi. "I don't like seeing her like this. I'm going to go, I have to make some calls anyways and they don't like people using cell phones in here." He turned on his heel and hightailed out of the room.

This immediately aroused Kakashi's suspicions. Why had he reacted so badly to the ninja's presence… and he wasn't supposed to know that the Hokage even existed!! Although everything in his body fought what he was about to do, he stood, and made to follow Kyoshi out the door. "He's actually reminded me that there are a couple people I need to call."

"Can I have your number? I mean…" she blushed suddenly. "I know Crystal and Danielle…they'll want to thank you for saving them…

He pulled a piece of paper out of his pocket and scribbled his cell phone number onto it, along with his name and handed it to Bethany. "Thanks," she said. "I'll talk to you soon then?"

Kakashi nodded and said "It was nice to meet you Bethany," before he walked quickly out of the room.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

Kyoshi sat in his rental car and clenched his fists around the wheel until the knuckles turned white. How on earth had they found them so fast? Was there some connection that he had underestimated, something his jutsu hadn't accounted for? Was it simply the work of that cursed demon seeking out his life mate? And if that was the case why was the Hokage there, besides the fact that he had lost his wife. How would he have known that the two women who had been unconscious in the bed…were the ones he was looking for?

The door on the passenger's side opened up and Kai slid into the passenger seat. "What's so urgent?" he asked, and drew back slightly when he saw the dangerous look on his friend's face.

"Kakashi's here."

Kai winced. "And his presence means that everyone else isn't very far behind." Kyoshi confirmed his friend's words with a nod. "Dear Lord Kyoshi, this could ruin everything."

"You think I don't know that?" demanded the brown haired man angrily. "The only way it wouldn't would be if…." The anger faded from his face. He then sent a wicked glance to Kai, and the other ninja could see the cogs working in his friend's head. "What if they fell in love with the wrong person? Or at least….what if they think that the wrong person is their wife?"

"Kyoshi don't you think we've done enough? I mean…Kendo-Sama asked us to break the jutsu, not make it worse."

"Kendo-Sama isn't here Kai," snapped Kyoshi. "Think!! If I remain Crystal's 'boyfriend', and Bethany falls for Kakashi, then he's going to be around a bit more. He's obviously going to call the rest of the group out here, to the west coast, and I have no disguise to hide what I look like! When Gaara sees me he will wonder what I'm doing here and my betrayal will be known to everyone faster than a heartbeat, and they'll know I did the Jutsu. I'm the only spy Kendo has in the Suna ANBU, Desert Death will be destroyed if Gaara discovers my presence here."

Recognizing his friend's rising anger, Kai retreated from the topic. No matter what he thought, Kyoshi was hell-bent on achieving the goal of Desert Death, with or without the blessing of the leader.

The blonde Shinobi had supported his best friend through whatever happened. Now he started to wonder if maybe that had been a mistake. He could see now the extent to which Kyoshi was willing to go to gain his revenge. He'd fight until he died…and he, Kai had supported his best friend's bid for death. Because surely, the Kazekage wouldn't allow the threat to his wife to live. And then, the fallout from Kyoshi's death would ripple across the rest of the organization.

Sumira would be heartbroken when he died at Gaara's hand, and when Kyoshi was linked to Desert Death, they would all be put to death. Kendo would go down fighting, Sumira would welcome it, once Kyoshi was gone…and all the other members, with their leading council gone, would scatter to the winds…hunted to extinction.

Unless he, Kai, could stop it. People would still die…but it would remain as Kendo had foreseen. Only three would die because of Kyoshi's mistake. Kai made the decision that sealed his own fate and became determined to track down the Hokage once Kyoshi had left him alone.

OoOoOoOoOoOo

It had been several hours since he had left the hospital, and he waited in the Airport for the others. According to the board he was looking at, Neji's plane should've landed 10 minutes ago but due to storms, they were delayed. Gaara was flying the farthest, and was still in the air.

It was very faint, so faint he almost didn't pick it up at first. The boys were playing with some toys he had bought them, sitting on a chair beside him. Instantly at alert, he surveyed the area for a face that may look familiar, a face that might bear chakra.

A sandy-haired man sat down next to him, his eyes also focused on the board. Kakashi felt another faint shiver of chakra, and he shifted his entire concentration, although not his eyes, to the man sitting next to him. In a very quiet voice, so the children wouldn't hear, he said, "I can sense what you're doing. You have my attention, provided you're no threat to the boys"

"I think that what my people have done to you in the past month is enough, you don't need your children taken from you."

"Your people? Are you responsible for what happened to our wives? Who are you?" His anger and animosity growing by the second, the threat in Kakashi's voice was clear as the noonday sun.

"Not me. My friend did, on behalf of the organization that we are a part of. I will not tell you my name, it's too dangerous."

"Desert Death."

"Yes. I first ask you, before I tell you what I know, that you not turn me over to Gaara. I'm a ninja of Suna and he could- rightly -have me executed for my part in this. Also, I can tell you that you have the right girls. I just can't tell you who is who…only my friend knows that and he won't tell me so I'm not a liability."

"He sounds like a nice friend," Kakashi's voice was sarcastic but already he was warming up this man. Although I must ask you to give me a good reason not to turn you over to the Kazekage. I would execute you on the spot if you were a Konoha Shinobi."

"In order for you to get your wives back, I, and my two companions must remain alive…We're the only ones who can return them too you, and Kyoshi is the only one who knows who's who."

"Kyoshi!!" Kakashi's anger reached a breaking point and his voice became louder, attracting the notice of the boys. The sandy haired man flinched and nodded.

"I know you've met him, and I ask you to not go hunting him down right away, although I realize that will be very hard for you."

"Give me one reason I shouldn't go hunt him down and torture the answers I want from him. I miss my wife, and my children need their mother."

"Because in order for you to get their memories back…the jutsu can only be broken by the caster, and two volunteers sacrificing their lives. You need Kyoshi –and myself, as one of those volunteers- alive."

A/N-Well…Read and Review. I know it's been awhile, but I'll finish it I swear!!


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